SENTINEL

A SENTINEL Sergeant and members of his squad

“The SENTINEL Order is a military institution dedicated to the pursuit of Justice in the Galaxy.”

- Unnamed Watcher

“In the name of Justice!”

- SENTINEL Battlecry

The Knights of the All Union, the Order of SENTINEL are peace keepers operating under the motto of “In the name of Justice!” Created by the Watchers, who were the followers of the Dragon God Shine, SENTINEL has long been one of the most powerful forces in the galaxy. Following in the example of his sacrifice to save the universe from Shiva, SENTINEL gather their power from the essence of Shine and were the original keepers of the Bloodstone. However, even their considerable power was no match for the Sarans, and they were quickly cowed before the warrior tribe from Kazan. They lost their pride as well as the Bloodstone to the Sarans, and they were forced to strike a humiliating deal to avoid destruction at their hands. To this day, the deal is one of the most closely guarded secrets in the galaxy.

Open to aliens from all over the All Union, the membership of SENTINEL is very diverse. Recruits who display desirable qualities are exposed to the Central Core where they gain the power of the god Shine. They are thereafter enrolled in the Academy, a 5 year program which instructs potential SENTINELs in the use of their power and what will be expected of them as peacekeepers.

History

The Fall of the Gods and the Rise of the Watchers

During the Heroic Age, the Dragon Gods held dominion over the entire galaxy. This empire was broken into countless kingdoms each with their own rulers, but these had to pay tribute to the gods and obey their cult, called the Holy Order. The Holy Order was run by a race of green skinned halflings called the Watchers, who were said to speak for the gods. The Watchers were created by the Gods and based on the planet Rya to act as the administrators of the galactic empire. They possessed incredible psychic abilities which would allow them to dominate the wills of lesser races, and were taught to abandon emotion and embrace logic. Gifted with incredible wisdom to allow them to run the Empire righteously, they were also conditioned to obey the will of the gods with unquestioning loyalty. They were granted authority over the Ogres, who served as the military arm of the Holy Order. They served the gods for millennia in this capacity until the Cataclysm where Shiva went mad and attempted to destroy all life.

As the Watchers came to Shine's aid, he tried to stop them from throwing their lives away by removing their loyalty conditioning to give them the option to run, granting them free will for the first time in the race's history. However, the Watchers decided ignore Shine's order to save themselves and stood with him against Shiva. They suffered horrible casualties when they used their power to stun her and buy Shine time to trap her in her crystal prison. As he lay dying, the Watchers that the Age of Gods was over, and that now began the Age of Mortals. He begged his former servants to obey his final orders: Protect the Mortals.

The Watchers found themselves at the center of a power vacuum left by the gods, and decided to move quickly. They took Shine's body, still charged with the virtually limitless power of the collected gods, and connected their Auras to it. This granted them access to all the power and knowledge Shine had at the time of his death, and made them effectively immortal. They watched as the rest of the Galaxy fell into chaos, consolidating themselves on Rya creating a powerful fortress from the technology left behind by the gods. As more and more states looked to the custodians of the Old Empire, the Watchers decided to accept the mission Shine had charged them with and restore order and guide the emerging Age of Mortals.

Creation of the Order

Despite the near omnipotent power they now possessed, the Watchers were forced to recognize that they were not warriors and lacked the fighting spirit needed to keep the peace. They possessed the Bloodstone, which held the mad goddess Shiva and granted access to her reality altering powers, but the Watchers quickly recognized that use of the Stone brought with it the danger of corruption and possession. Instead, they first turned to their old warriors, the Ogres, to aid them in their mission to bring peace to the galaxy. However, the Ogres only obeyed the Watchers so longs as they spoke with the authority of the gods. Since the gods were gone, the Ogres did not recognize the Watchers' authority and refused to listen to them. Instead, the Ogres were more interested in creating their own kingdom from the carcass of the Old Empire, so the Watchers began scouting their own warriors from among the oppressed races of the galaxy.

Those of great power, strength of character, and courage were brought to Rya where they were infused with Shine's power. These warriors were equipped with the advanced technology of the gods, and trained into the most elite force the galaxy had ever seen. They were organized into an Order of peacekeepers called SENTINEL, and were charged with fighting evil and maintaining order. Using SENTINEL, the Watchers managed to intercede in many of the most violent wars throughout the galaxy and stop the fighting. They encouraged the more powerful states they came across to band together into a federation called the All Union. Through the All Union, the Watchers could prevent fighting between these great powers and could enforce the peace through the heavy handed use of SENTINEL when needed.

Early Campaigns and the Unification of the West

The next few centuries were spent unifying the great powers of the West Galaxy. The SENTINEL Order was the most powerful force to emerge in the post-Cataclysm galaxy, and the Watchers were not afraid to use them. As the All Union consolidated its power, the Watchers used SENTINEL to enforce the peace and quell rebellion by those who wished to remain outside the federation. Even those within the All Union quickly discovered that the Watchers and their Order weren't to be crossed. Just as the Watchers themselves were beyond bribery and coercion, so too were the warriors they chose for SENTINEL. One famous example of the Prince of Sylvan occurred where he attempted to bribe the SENTINEL Captain in charge of his sector of space to destroy an enemy of his. He was crucified on Brunent as an example to other princes and members of the All Union: Do not attempt to disrupt the peace.

As the West Galaxy came under control of the All Union, the Watchers made plans to spread their order throughout the galaxy. However, the South was strangely blocked to them, and in the North Galaxy they ran into a series of powerful outlaws who they were not able to quickly overcome.

The Bloodstone War

The Watchers began receiving reports that not only had the God King Crash survived the Cataclysm, but that he was on his way back into the galaxy to challenge the Watchers. After the Fall of the Gods, many dangerous races in the South Galaxy who had been held in check by the gods' power raged loose. Crash who had ended up in the South following his loss to Shiva, had been fighting them and driving them back into submission. After defeating the Vampires, he re-emerged into the rest of the Galaxy, shocked by what he found. Not only were all the other gods effectively dead, but Shiva was no trapped in a crystal prison and who held it could wish for whatever they wanted.

Disgusted by the lack of order he saw in the galaxy, he sought to use the Bloodstone to resurrect the gods and restore their empire. He discovered it was in the hands of the Watchers and ordered them to turn it over to him. However, since Shine had removed their loyalty conditioning they decided to stay true to their mission to protect the mortals and they refused to obey the God King. Crash was furious and threatened them with destruction. He sent the call out for those races still loyal to the gods to flock to him, and with them he created a new Holy Order. The Watchers were able to use their power to prevent Crash from manifesting himself on Rya and stealing the Stone from them, and in the field SENTINEL was more than a match for even the Ogres. In those battles where the All Union's forces were being overwhelmed, a Watcher would appear and use their power to remove the will to fight from the Holy Orders forces.

Unfortunately, despite these successes, no force the Watchers could muster could counter Crash himself. Individually no Watcher could stand before him, and even in great numbers they were only capable of staggering the God King. This stalemate remained for years until the Crash came across a previously unknown race on an ignored world in the Eastern Galaxy called Kazan.

On this planet Crash discovered the sarans, a powerful warrior race even stronger than the Ogres with a fighting spirit completely unrivaled. Best to King Crash, was that the sarans were immune to the psychic powers of the Watchers. With the sarans at the front lines, the Holy Order managed to break the stale mate and began driving back the All Union. SENTINEL, which had till now completely dominated the Ogres, found themselves on their heels against the sarans. This would not last however, as Crash's reliance on the sarans would come back to bite him.

The God King's one error was that he failed to recognize the difference between the Ogres, a warrior race created by the gods and conditioned to be blindly loyal to them, and the sarans who fought for Crash because they regarded it as fun to do so. Over time, the sarans grew to regard their fellows in the Holy Order as pathetic weaklings and chafed at Crash's control over them. They became resentful of the arrogant way Crash lorded over them and decided to throw off his rule. The sarans rebelled against the God King, and smashed the armies of the other Holy Order members. It took Crash himself to defeat the sarans, and he was determined to wipe them out now that they had turned against him. He looked like he might accomplish this task when the unthinkable happened. A lone saran appeared, manifesting more power than any mortal being before had exhibited. This saran, called the Oversaran, fought Crash on even footing and defeated him, driving him into exile.

The Watchers and the All Union breathed a sigh of relief, believing themselves to be saved from the wrath of the God King. What they failed to realize was that they were now presented with an enemy of unbridled fury who would burn their way across the Galaxy.

The Saran Conquest

The sarans left the Watchers with an opponent they were unsure how to fight. Generally whenever the Blue Light of Shine came up against the Burning Flame of the sarans, the Burning Flame consumed everything. It would not be until much later, through accessing of the knowledge stored within Shine that the Watchers learned the nature of their enemy, that they were demons from the Underplane which had evolved in the Midplane. However, this knowledge came too late to do the Watchers any good, and even with knowing it they still had no answer for the sarans. Since they had evolved in the Midplane, they could not be sealed into the Underplane as the First God had done to the original demons eons ago.

The Return of Crash and the Galactic Cold War

In the aftermath of the Saran Conquest, the galaxy settled into a state of relative stability. The All Union consolidated its power in the West, and made forays into the North where it made tentative inroads but never managed to successfully quell. The North was a hot bed of pirates and outlaws, and it seemed every time SENTINEL managed to put down one warlord another would pop up in his place. Meanwhile in the East the Ogres were slowly rebuilding their empire, though they were stymied by the sarans. The sarans had agreed following their conquest to relinquish their captured territory, but they would still engage in looting and raiding across the East and into the North.

This state of affairs lasted for thousands of years until Crash, having regenerated from his battle with the Oversaran, Sarada, came back to make another grab at the Bloodstone. However, Sarada had hidden it and its location was unknown to the current generation of Saran Kings. Indeed many regarded the existence of the Bloodstone as a myth. The sarans went into battle against the God King, but as before they were unable to defeat him. Fortunately for them, a new Oversaran called Zanko emerged, ready to take the fight to Crash. However, unlike Sarada before him, Zanko was crippled by a weakness that the God King could exploit: a fear of death.

Crash handily defeated this Oversaran, but instead of killing him he decided to make Zanko an offer. With the Bloodstone gone, Crash nothing to fear in the entire galaxy, but the logistics of running the empire bored him. Zanko would be made the leader of the Holy Order and given the title Holy Ghost, and would be tasked with restoring order by any means necessary and ensuring that the galaxy once again revered the gods. If he refused, Crash would wipe out all life in the galaxy starting with him. Zanko accepted, and was granted immortality through the gods arcane technology. He became the Holy Ghost, the chief of state and inheritor of Crash’s authority.

Zanko, now the Holy Ghost, returned to Kazan where he killed the saran King and restored rule of the cult of Crash to the sarans. Using them, he then set out pacifying the rest of the East Galaxy, acknowledging the authority bestowed on the Holy Ghost by the God King, others surrendering for fear of extermination at the hands of the sarans. The Holy Order succeeded in cowing all the powers in the East, making their capitol the planet Akeron. The Holy Ghost named Holy Warlords, who would act as the leaders of the member states of the Holy Order. The Holy Ghost ruled the East with an iron fist, ruthlessly putting down anyone who showed even the slightest sign of opposition. Under the Holy Order, the East became a police state where all had to be fanatically loyal to the cult of Crash.

With the East firmly under his control, the Holy Ghost began looking toward expanding the Holy Order’s empire. Forays into the North resulted in clashes between the Holy Order and SENTINEL, who were themselves trying to bring order to the North. Between the powerful outlaws existing in the North and the Watchers’ powerful foothold in the West, the Holy Ghost decided it was needlessly wasteful and troublesome to conquer the rest of the Galaxy. Instead, he worked to bolster the Outlaws in the North so that the Watchers would waste their resources fighting them. Meanwhile he would work to terrorize member states of the All Union and weaken the Watchers’ power base. The Watchers recognized this and mounted their own counter campaigns, resulting in wars being fought in the shadows between SENTINEL and the Holy Order. Thus the galaxy entered into a state of uneasy tension, with the Watchers and the All Union controlling the West Galaxy, the Holy Order controlling the East, and shared control of the North. The South remained inaccessible.

The Selikan Wars

In the year XXXXX AC, a new threat appeared in the galaxy. From the planet of Benchley a race of powerful sharkmen called Selikans achieved space travel and quickly stole warp technology from their neighbors. They expanded from their planet with an enthusiasm reminiscent of the sarans, and SENTINEL moved quickly to nip this potential enemy in the bud. However, the selikans were numerous and fast moving, and it took the combined power of 5 Legions to contain them. In a desperate bid to stop them, the Watchers decided to issue an Extermination Order on Benchley, and a full third of the Order appeared and completely destroyed the planet. In doing so, SENTINEL managed to snuff out the selikans as a unified threat, but by now the selikans had spread far enough that there were tens of thousands of survivors. Many of these survivors turned to piracy, with several becoming powerful enough to achieve the title of Outlaw King.

The Hapes Disaster

The Hapes Disaster occurred when the rising selikan outlaw Undart managed, through a series of sneaky campaigns, to seize control of the planet Hapes, a powerful center of commerce in the West Galaxy. Given the seriousness of the situation, the Watchers deployed the 3rd, 9th, and 16th Legions into action. The three Captains were Gideon, Max Bassmann, and rising star Hefe Logan.

Despite initial successes, the battle soon took a turn for the worst as Undart revealed his reason for invading Hapes, biological weapons. SENTINEL suffered massive casualties, though Captains Town and Logan managed to corner Undart. He proved to be a powerful foe though, and he bit off Captain Town's arm before managing to escape to the surface of Hapes. After evacuating the injured Face, Hefe gathered a strike force to invade Undart's fortress on the planet. However, he was stopped by Captain Gideon. Gideon told Hefe that he had deemed the battle unwinnable, and being the senior Captain he had ordered an Extermination Order to take care of Undart there and now instead of running the risk of him getting away.

Well aware of the implications of the Extermination Order, Hefe tried to contact the Watchers to cancel it, but Gideon overrode him. He watched helplessly as a third of the Order arrived and blasted the planet Hapes into dust, leaving no survivors. In the aftermath there was a hearing to determine what went wrong with the mission. To Hefe and Face's shock Gideon laid the blame entirely on them, spinning the facts of the mission to make the blunder entirely of their fault. Given Gideon's stellar reputation within the Order, the Watchers took his testimony as fact and severely censured Face and Hefe. DIsgusted at their treatment, the two resigned their commissions and left the Order.

The Lost Legion

A great mystery in the records of the SENTINEL Order is the fate of the 6th Legion. In the year XXXXXX A.C. there was a revolt on the planet Pallas IV in the Northern Galaxy. The government of the planet had collapsed and chaos reigned. The man behind all this was a powerful outlaw by the name of Saint Kruger, one of the great menaces of the North Galaxy. Saint Kruger was a religious heretic who believed that salvation could only be bought with blood, and he committed genocide in his pursuit of enlightenment. Despite being a violent psychopath, he was also extremely charismatic and managed to raise a small army of violent criminals and terrorists who enthusiastically carried out his every whim. With this force, he managed to make enemies of the All Union, Holy Order, and even other Outlaw Kings. However, because of his volatile and unpredictable nature, the other Outlaws left him alone and he regularly killed the Holy Order warriors and SENTINELs sent against him.

After causing a great deal of havoc in the East Galaxy during his latest “pilgrimage” he came to settle on the planet Pallas in the North Galaxy, overthrowing it’s government and plunging it into chaos. Now centralized on a single planet, SENTINEL moved to arrest him for all the damage caused by him in the West. Because of his status as an A-Class threat the Watchers ordered the entire 6^th Legion to Pallas to deal with him. What the Watchers did not know, was that the Holy Ghost was also fed up with Saint Kruger and had sent his own Angel of Death to deal with him.

The Watchers sent in the 6th Legion to restore order, but shortly after their arrival in orbit all contact with them was lost. Agents of the Black Legion arrived on the planet to investigate, but found no sign of life on the planet. There was evidence on the planet of a bloody conflict and use of weapons of mass destruction, but the level of carnage apparent on caused the Black Legion Agent a great deal of suspicion and concern. The wreckage of the 6th Legion's flagship orbited the planet, but there were no survivors onboard.

In the aftermath of the 6th Legion's loss, the Watchers engaged in a massive reorganization and recruitment drive to quickly refill their ranks. It was worried that such a massive loss of manpower would embolden the Holy Order to make a move against the All Union.

It would not be until much later that the Deathwalk Cain would reveal the fate of the Legion. As St. Kruger had made an enemy of the Holy Order, the Holy Ghost had ordered him to Pallas IV to make a bloody example. He used the chaos of the Pallasian government's collapse to cover his presence and he set about slaughtering everyone he found, easily killing Saint Kruger and killing every one of his soldiers and even the planet's innocent residents. While he was doing this, the 6th Legion arrived. Cain asked the Ghost how he should continue and he was ordered to obliterate all enemies of the Holy Order. Cain then butchered the SENTINEL landing party (made up of 300 SENTINELs and the Legion's Lieutenant) and used one of their vessels to get aboard the flagship. Once there he killed the rest of the Legion, including the veteran Captain Suza Fone. He thereafter used his Dark Bomb attack to destroy the vessel, covering any evidence of his presence there.

The Return of the God King

In a later age the God King returned to the Galaxy, seeking revenge for the insult done him before.

War With the Horde

When the Truan Imperium went to war with the Vampire Horde from the South Galaxy, it kept the rest of the All Union at bay, insisting that they could take care of the threat themselves. Since the Truan Emperor, Timon, was one of the more powerful seats of the AU’s Inner Circle, the Watchers respected his request to keep their noses out of their affairs. This changed however, when the Horde managed to launch a successful strike against the Truan Capitol of Tanthalas. They sent a full 5 Legions expecting to bring the conflict to a quick resolution. What happened next shocked them.

Princess Tei, long fearing that the Horde was a greater threat than her father was willing to admit to, took her own steps by hiring the Magnificent 7, by now the most infamous group of outlaws in the Galaxy, to help. When Drake’s vampiric evolution completed he and his armies managed to overrun Kazan. John, Cain, and Torm fought with Drake while the rest of the group tried to escape the planet. The 5 Legion Task Force interfered with the battle, temporarily driving off the Horde and arresting the Magnificent 7. It was soon discovered however, that 3 of the Captains, Gideon, Lobo, and Chaney, were sleeper agents for the Horde, who betrayed SENTINEL and left the strike force completely open to being slaughtered. In the confusion the Magnificent 7 and Tei managed to escape with the Bloodstone shards to Earth.

The Horde followed them and took over the planet. Now aware of the scope of the threat the Horde posed, the Watchers issued an Extermination Order on Earth in an attempt to destroy the Horde while they were grouped together. Before acting on those orders, Solo and the 1^st Legion rescued Tei as a favor to her dead father. Unfortunately bringing the Bloodstone Shards into the open was exactly what Drake was waiting for and he launched an attack directly against the Extermination Force. SENTINEL was being slowly overwhelmed until the Magnificent 7 joined the fray. These warriors managed to single-handedly wipe out Brood Prime and Drake, saving the Galaxy from yet another crisis.

In the aftermath, the true toll of the battle against the Horde became clear. SENTINEL had suffered its highest casualty rate in the history of the Order. Also damaged was its reputation. Once again the Galaxy had been saved by a group of outlaws. The Watchers told John Nash that SENTINEL would be taking credit for the victory. In exchange for keeping their mouths shut the Watchers would drop the charges against the 7 and leave them in peace. John accepted the terms, but warned the Watchers that if they got in their way again, the 7 would come directly for the Watchers. Another development was that Cain’s younger brother Torm, embarrassed by his lack of power, decided to join SENTINEL. In doing so, SENTINEL gained among its number not only its first saran recruit, but a developing Oversaran.

Satan and the Fall of Rya

When Lilith re-emerged in the Galaxy, the Watchers were caught offguard. Discovering her plans only during Lt. Torm's visit to Earth to see his brother, they mobilized too late to counter the emergence of Satan. When the Devil King emerged from the fractured barrier, empowered by the Bloodstone, he went on a rampage across the galaxy destroying everything he came across. Drawn to Rya by the power he sensed there, he attacked. Captain Solo and the Veteran Legion coordinated the planet's defense, but even with a force of almost 20 of the Order's Legions SENTINEL was powerless against Satan. He unleashed an attack that cracked Rya open causing the planet's destruction. Rya was destroyed in a violent explosion, seemingly taking a third of the Order's Legions and the Watchers themselves with it.

Satan then returned to Earth to finish ripping down the dimensional barrier. He was followed by the surviving Legions of the Order, who surrounded the planet and managed to descend to the planet thanks to Ernie Hammer opening portals for them. Solo told John that SENTINEL would support him and the 7, since it was now clear that only they stood a chance against Satan. He also revealed that the Watchers had managed to save the Order's power base at the last minute.

Apparently long aware of the possibility of an enemy emerging who SENTINEL could not stop, the Watchers had made preparations to move the entire city of Rya to Ultima. As Rya was destroyed, the Watchers put into action a plan to save their Order by shunting Rya City into the Ultima dimension and depositing it on Crash’s former Throne World. They revealed that since the Magnificent 7 had traversed the Dragon Road and defeated Crash, the Watchers had debated whether or not to move to their creator’s former homeworld and claim it as their own. The destruction of Rya by Satan ended all debate, and forced the Watchers to carry out the plan prematurely. With the power of the gods at their disposal, the Watchers now possessed the ability to know all that was going on in the Universe at any given moment. They felt that from here they would be better able to coordinate SENTINEL’s activities.

In the aftermath of the battle, Solo had the charges against Ernie Hammer dropped and offered him a Captain’s Seat in the Order again. Hammer refused, citing that he intended to enjoy retirement on Earth with his family after so many years away, but agreed to work with SENTINEL again in a consultant capacity.

The Guardians of Time

Having taken control of Ultima, the Watchers had assumed the seat of power previously held by the Dragon Clan. They re-established relations with the city of Sanctuary on Crown and asserted themselves as the true Masters of Shiva. Having access to all of time and space within their Universe, the Watchers discovered they had ultimate access to all of their Universe's existence and could provide protection for it on a level they had never before dreamed.

They decided to rededicate the SENTINEL Order to the maintenance of Shiva's timeline, sending their warriors to times and places of great strife in order to preserve events. Amusingly they discovered that the Blue Armored Warriors of Legend who they'd based the SENTINEL Order on were actually always SENTINEL in the first place.

Having moved on from their role as the All Union's Police Force, the Watchers nevertheless maintained an open channel to the Inner Circle on Brunent.

Mission

The Mission of the SENTINEL Order as laid out by the Watchers is as follows:

Upon recruitment, a SENTINEL is expected to uphold certain principles of their duty. These principles include:

1. The pursuit of Justice within the assigned sector.

2. Following the orders of the Watchers without question.

3. Noninterference with a planet's culture, political structure, or its population's collective will.

4. Acting within local laws and obeying the local authority within reason (the Watchers' orders can overrule this when necessary).

5. Taking no action against anyone or anything until they are proven to be an enemy of Justice.

6. Refusing to use the equipment, resources, or authority of the Order for personal gain.

7. Showing respect for and cooperating with other members of the Order and the Watchers.

8. Showing respect for life which includes restraint of force unless there is no reasonable alternative.

9. Giving top priority to the greatest danger in the assigned sector.

10. Upholding the honor of the Order.

General Operation

The SENTINEL Order, in contrast to the normal operations of modern-day militaries, does not operate as a cohesive unit normally. The command of the Legions are generally left to the discretion of their particular Captains, who commonly run it whatever way he or she sees fit, allowing for the change of a Legion's traditional duties to an entirely new set and even the creation of a separate institution connected to the Legion. SENTINEL's main duty is to defend the All Union but they are also allocated districts in the Frontier to enforce law.

The only general authority to call forth a combined front would be that of an edict from the Watchers. It is not uncommon for Captains to not see each other as a whole group for long periods of time, except for cases involving a threat to all of the All Union, a Captain's punishment, or to a lesser degree, a Captain's promotion. On a regular basis, the Captains are spread out all across the Universe doing their Legion's duties, whatever they may be. They are, in fact, so far spread out that getting the Captains together as a group, or even getting their Lieutenants together as a group, could normally take a great deal of time to accomplish.

Unless specifically ordered by the Watchers, Captains can choose whether or not to attend meetings (at their own risk) or not even involve themselves in the daily situations of the Order. Captains are not allowed, without permission, to carry out activities outside of their normal jurisdiction or their Legion. The Captain of one Legion cannot punish the subordinates of another Captain.

Structure

The Order is lead by the Watchers, who have the statuary authority to conduct all the affairs of SENTINEL while simultaneously advising the All Union's Inner Circle in matters involving the All Union. Individual Legions are commanded by a Captain, and are made up of rougly 1000 SENTINELs. Each Legion is broken into 10 Squads of 100 SENTINELs each.

Personnel

As with any army, the SENTINEL Order has ranks. Each Legion is commanded by a Captain, who is attended by a Lieutenant. The Lieutenants oversee 10 Sergeants, who in turn run the Squads. The ranks and their descriptions are below, from highest to lowest in terms of strength. The Order is an organization with a merit-based hierarchy. They have disposed of the system of rank based on seniority. Abilities are the only thing used to determine one's rank.

The Watchers

The SENTINEL Order is under the direct control of the Watchers. Their title dates back to the origin of their race and their stated duty to "watch over" the Gods' empire. In addition to their position as Power Behind The Throne, overseeing the All Union's Inner Circle, they are the highest authority in the Order, and the only beings who the Captains will answer to. While they are generally content to give the various Captains total discretion in how they run their Legions, since the Van Maximo Incident they keep a closer eye on what their Legions get up to. Because of their immortal life spans and connection to the far seeing sight Shine possessed at the time of his death, the Watchers are often engaged in elaborate long term plans to ensure peace in the Galaxy, and are unconcerned with the day to day runnings of the Legions. At other times, they will deploy entire Legions to trouble spots with little or no explanation.

Captains

Marked by the blue armored coats they wear, SENTINEL Captains are the strongest and most respected members of the Order. As a general thing, all Captains are far more powerful than even their lieutenants. Most captains are also skilled in the use of high level fighting techniques, and generally have extensive knowledge of SENTINEL history and battle tactics. All of these factors create a vast power-gap between Captains and lower-ranked officers.

Captains determine the course, organization, tactics and policy of their Legion. The power a captain has over his/her Legion is absolute and cannot be questioned by subordinates or the captains of the other Legions. A Captain can choose to change the Legion specialty. Due to Captains having supreme authority in their respective Legion the Legions have become separate entities and not a cohesive military. In this way they only have the right to punish the actions of their subordinates and not those of other Legions unless in the instance that the Legion in question has no current Captain or the subordinates actions are against the laws or rules of the All Union.

Although not commonly stated, the true power of the All Union lies in the captains of the SENTINEL, as they are the leaders of its military arm. With them at full strength, the All Union is safe and almost unbeatable. If they are broken, their strength dwindles, making them highly vulnerable.

Captains' Council

The Captains congregate together in the main hall of the Rya's Central Chamber to discuss important issues involving their specific Legions and matters that affect the Order and the All Union. This council is highly formal with the Watchers leading its proceedings. All captains are considered equal and determine the course of their individual Legion unless dictated otherwise by the Watchers. Votes are carried out via a unanimous consensus.

Lieutenants

Lieutenants function as executive officers for their Legion, taking care of or supervising day-to-day operations. They (along with their captains) are not assigned to one specific squad. While they are rarely as skilled or learned as their Captains, they are still the second strongest in their Legion. In the case of a Captain's death, departure, or other circumstances making him unable to perform their duties, the Lieutenant acts as the "substitute captain" until another can be assigned. Lieutenants are marked by a white shoulder pauldron with a blue down facing triangle on it.

Sergeants

Sergeants are the go-betweens for rank and file SENTINELs and their officers. Lieutenants generally receive their orders directly from the Captain or Lieutenant, and then delegate it to the rest of their Legion. There are usually 10 Sergeants to a Legion, and each of them runs a squad of 100 SENTINELs who they oversee. SENTINEL Sergeants will post bounties for their subordinates, and will occasionally gather together teams to take on more dangerous criminals.

SENTINELS

Drawn from the greatest warriors of the various member states of the All Union, individual SENTINELs are among the greatest fighters in the Galaxy. They are granted almost total autonomy in how they go about collecting bounties and maintaining order in their assigned sector. In most cases the highest up the chain of command they see on a regular basis is their Sergeant. In most cases the only people to see the Lieutenant are the Sergeants, and the only person to see the Captain is the Lieutenant. This tends to vary though, as more specialized Legions like the 23^rd or the 30^th are much tighter and the Captains tend to have a personal relationship with all their troops.

The Legions

The SENTINEL Order is divided into 50 Legions, each of 1000 agents and commanded by a Captain.  The Captain is seconded by a Lieutenant, who oversees 10 Sergeants who in turn command squads of 100 SENTINELs.   The number of Legions has varied over the long history of the Order, but has always leveled out at 50. Over the course of long campaigns, due to casualties in peacetime or because of casualties, some Legions have been deactivated or folded into others. In extreme cases a Legion is disbanded and stricken from the records due to a dishonor, such as the 43rd Legion, which was lead by the disgraced Captain, Van Maximo. Other times, a newly activated Legion will be given the identity of a long deactivated one and made heirs to its honors and history.  Certain Legions are identified as specialized and never deactivated. 

Patrol Legions

Most though are organized as "Patrol Legions", general purpose forces organized for the pursuit and capture of criminals across the galaxy, or when called upon to mobilize as unified forces to counter catastrophic threats. The Patrol Legions are given an area of space and tasked with maintaining peace and order within that sector. 

Reserve Legions

The title “Reserve” is somewhat of a misnomer, as despite this status these Legions are constantly active.  Instead the name more refers to them being reserved for very specific tasks.  The Reserve Legions are Invitation Only, either a prospective SENTINEL must be approached by agents of the Legion or his attributes will be considered vital and the Watchers themselves will order the transfer.

1^st Legion: Veteran

This Legion is made up of the Order's most experienced and powerful fighters, and its deployment is reserved for only the most dangerous of foes.  Its sergeants are as strong as the Lieutenants of many of the other Legions.  In the event the Watchers are neutralized, command of the SENTINEL Order falls to the Captain of the Veteran Legion.  The 1st is currently lead by the legendary Captain Solo.

13^th Legion: Doomsday

The 13th Legion has historically been the secret weapon of the Order, made up from fighters too powerful to be controlled to be unleashed against the greatest threats.  The 13th Legion was put together early in the Order's history as a so-called "doomsday Legion", and was deactivated following the crisis it was meant to battle. When the superhuman mercenary Amra and his Red Brotherhood Assault Squad were recruited into the Order, the Legion was reactivated and turned over to him.

32^nd Legion: Science

In addition to the responsibilities of a regular patrol Legion, the 32nd Legion is dedicated to the research and development of new weapons or equipment for use by the Order.

666^th Legion: Punishment

The 666^th Legion is the Military Police responsible for internal security for the Order.  When an agent is accused of wrong doing they are investigated by a member of the 666^th.  If they are found guilty they are removed from their Legion and brought to the Tombs, a hellish prison maintained by the Order for the purpose of incarcerating people the Order has deemed to be too dangerous to roam free.  The 666th Legion inherited control of the Order's prison known as the Tombs centuries ago.

00 Legion: Black Ops

More generally referred to as the Black Legion, it is given the designation 00 and is never listed in any of the Order's records, since it does not technically "exist".  The Black Legion is tasked with any manner of activity for which the Watchers need plausible deniability, and frequently work undercover deep behind enemy lines.  They have vast authority transcending that of even other SENTINELs, able to lie, cheat, and kill anyone they must in order to achieve their mission.  The Black Legion currently exists as the 101st Legion and is lead by Captain Gaheris Wrath.

Recruitment and Training

When an Applicant demonstrates desirable traits for membership into the Order, they are subjected to a number of tests. If they pass these, they are brought before a Watcher, who creates a ball of pure Shine Essence and then forces the ball into the Applicant using the method known as Infusion. The Applicant is then left to either master the conversion or die in the process. If they survive, they are sent to the Academy, where they will spend the next 5 years learning how Shine Power is used and the rules of the SENTINEL Order. Upon graduation they are inducted into the Order and allowed to wear the distinctive blue armor of a SENTINEL.

After completing the Academy on Rya, a newly inducted SENTINEL will be assigned to one of the Legions and report to their Precinct, a giant vessel which serves as the Legion’s headquarters and most powerful weapon. There they will choose a job from among the bounties put up by a Sergeant. While most SENTINELs work alone, for more dangerous bounties it is common for them to band together into teams. Bounties are rated E-S in ascending order of difficulty, and SENTINELs are allowed to take jobs appropriate to their rank. SENTINELs are permitted only E-C ranked bounties, Sergeants are able to take on jobs C-B Class, Lieutenants take jobs B-A Class, and only Captains are permitted to tackle the most powerful A and S Class bounties. For a SENTINEL of lesser rank to be able to tackle a job beyond their rank, they must be on a team with an agent of the appropriate rank. For instance, a Sergeant can gather a team of rank and file agents to help him in taking out a bounty.

Equipment

As the Watchers are the inheritors of the power and technology left behind by the gods, the SENTINEL Order has access to equipment so advanced it appears as magic to even other space faring races throughout the Galaxy.

Uniform

The SENTINEL Order maintains a strict dress code from which deviation is not permitted. On humanoids, the uniform consists of a black body suit, with blue armor over the upper torso and shoulders, and blue bracers on the forearms and shins. Their Badge, which is modeled after the Crest of Shine, is attached to their left chestplate. Non-humanoid personnel of the Order are expected to adhere to this as closely as their physiology will allow. The uniform itself is materialized by the SENTINEL Badge as one of its functions. If the uniform is damaged, the badge is able to repair it quickly.

Badge

A SENTINEL's badge not only identifies them and their place in the Order, it is also a highly advanced computer which is connected directly to the SENTINEL Mainframe and keeps them in touch with their Space Pod and Headquarters. A SENTINEL's badge is keyed directly to them and will respond to their psychic commands, even being able to be psychically summoned if it is not in physical contact with them. By tapping their badge, SENTINELs can call up bounty sheets and intelligence about the planet they're on and who they’re pursuing. The Computer Badge can also detect the Auras and strength levels of people on a planet, as well as scanning individuals to determine their race and/or identity. SENTINEL Badges are also able to talk to and advise the wearer as to various courses of action. SENTINEL Badges can also connect with and hack most other forms of technology, disarming traps, opening doors, etc. The Badge can also scan for energy signatures or particular objects. For more intricate problems or problems that require a back logged history (Of a planet, person, group, ETC.), the Badge connects with the SENTINEL mainframe on Rya. Badges also contain a pocket dimension in which a SENTINEL can store equipment like Capture Balls. Like all SENTINEL technology, the Badge is thought activated and keyed to the SENTINEL it is assigned to, and is able to upload information or speak to them directly into their mind.

Capture Ball

One of the most important devices used by SENTINEL is the Capture Ball. The Capture Ball is a spherical device used by SENTINELs to capture criminals or other hostiles and store them to be transported to a proper prison. Upon contact, the balls convert an enemy into energy, draw it inside, and close automatically. Most Aura using races are able to resist and break free; however, weakened enemies are less able to struggle and therefore more easily captured, often requiring a SENTINEL to subdue their target before trapping them in the ball. Capture Balls can hold more than one weakened enemy, as demonstrated by the SENTINEL Sergeant Rin who trapped half a dozen outlaws in one and was confident that they had been too weakened before hand to escape.

Space Pod

Space Pods are a type of spaceship used by SENTINELs, and various races of the Holy Order (such as the sarans or ogres) for interplanetary travel. Saiyan Pods used incredible technology and even though it is only 1.5 m in diameter, it houses an advanced environmental system and an incredibly fuel-efficient faster-than-light drive. The Space Pod can travel at incredible speeds, far outpacing even large cruisers. It was explained that this is because the Pods were originally designed as interplanetary weapons which had to get to their target very quickly. They are referred to several times as “steerable missiles.” Often has consequences for the destination point, as the extreme speed often causes massive explosions upon impact, wiping out everything within a certain radius and leaving nothing but a massive crater in its place. Specialized landing pads can reduce the damage to non-existent. The Pods themselves are heavily armored from the outside to prevent any damage during transit or landing. They also do not need any external force for takeoff, being self sufficient enough to launch themselves into space on their own by projecting an Aura that counters gravity and propels them through space. The Pods have a remote control which for SENTINELs is a function worked into their Badge, which allows the owners to recall their pods to their location or trigger a self-destruction, among other potential functions.

Power Staves

Power Staves are less powerful analogs of the Power Swords made for use by SENTINELs assigned to the Tombs.

SENTINEL Cruisers

A SENTINEL Cruiser passing a planet.

Every Legion has its own cruiser which serves as its headquarters and most powerful weapon.  The ship is made entirely from Holy Technology designed by the Dragon God Forge, but repurposed by the Watchers for use by the SENTINEL Order.  The first ships used by the Order were merely Holy Order cruisers painted blue.  Later versions were created more to the Watcher's specifications to aid the SENTINELs in their tasks.

According to the Order's mission, the ship generally patrols an area of space to which a particular Legion is assigned, and is staffed by the SENTINEL’s agents.  It is under the control of the Legion’s Captain, and is almost completely automated to free up the Legion’s SENTINELs to go about fighting.  Each ship has its own AI which is able to broadcast itself as a hologram anywhere on the ship.  Some Captains have a standing practice of allowing the ship's AI to have a humanoid body which will act as an assistant.

SENTINEL Cruisers are easily the most advanced ships in the Known Universe, and fighting one is generally regarded as suicidally stupid by all but the most powerful of the Holy Order's soldiers.  They possess sturdy armor, impenetrable shields, and weapons which are capable of reducing planets to dust.  They are designed to hold the space pods of all 1000 members of a Legion as well as their lodging (though most SENTINELs will have a base somewhere in the sector they patrol).  SENTINEL Cruisers also contain the most powerful flash drives in the Known Universe, allowing them to travel intergalactic distances relatively quickly.

Culture

The personnel of SENTINEL are drawn from countless races spread throughout the galaxy, all brought together to serve the Watchers' mission of Justice. They are expected to abandon any ties to their state of origin and swear sole allegiance to the Watchers and the SENTINEL Order. As SENTINEL is a Military Order dedicated to the preservation of peace throughout the Galaxy, the Watchers are very careful about recruitment. SENTINELs are accepted on the basis of their intelligence, wisdom, and courage. Courage especially is very important, since SENTINELs are expected to hold their own against the most intimidating criminals in the Galaxy. Cowardice is not tolerated within the Order, and fleeing in the face of the enemy is an executable offense. Agents are granted a great deal of authority within the member states of the All Union, but are generally forbidden in interfering in the affairs of planets unless a criminal has acted on a cosmic scale or is too powerful for local authorities to handle. Abuse of their power can result in censure, expulsion, or execution.

Rya

Rya is the home planet of the Watchers and the Headquarters for SENTINEL. The planet itself is in the same system as the planet Brunent, the capital of the All Union. While Brunent was created to be a beautiful garden world, Rya is a moon sized fortress world, completely covered with blue buildings. Two rings orbit the planet along its north and South Poles. It is believed that Rya was once a thriving and bustling world, but that it was reduced to a husk by a power mad Shiva. In the aftermath of the Cataclysm, the Watchers used their understanding of the gods technology to turn Rya into a fortress. The entire planet is covered by a city of gleaming blue metal. A continent sized emblem of Shine is emblazoned on the planet, and it is surrounded by two rings around the North and South poles.

Rya serves as the home for the Watchers for thousands of years until an emergency forces them to teleport the whole city to Ultima.

Today, protection and running of Rya is largely the responsibility of the SENTINEL 31^st Legion.

Central Chamber

Located in the very center of the capitol city of Rya, this is where the Watchers meet and is where SENTINEL Captains receive their briefing and assignments. The Central Core which houses the body of Shine is directly below this Chamber. Under no circumstances are weapons allowed inside this chamber, and even the senior Captains of SENTINEL must leave their Power Swords at the door before entering.

The Academy

The Academy was set up for SENTINELs to endure series of tests and combat trainings. It takes most normal recruits 5 years to complete the Academy.

Hall of Records

The Hall of Records is a vast library mainly housing the Book of Rya, containing many of its histories and prophecies. The library also carries records of SENTINEL and mementos of their victories and defeats.

Memorial Hall

The Memorial Hall was erected to dedicate SENTINELs members who lost their lives in the line of duty. It houses statues of great SENTINELs in the history of the Order and houses the remains of many of the Order’s heroes. A SENTINEL named Morana is the cryptkeeper.

Since the days of the war with Crash, Rya has been heavily fortified. The planet is protected from physical attack by the impenetrable barrier called the quantum force field, and from teleportation incursions by the transduction barrier - which can be reinforced to repel most levels of this type of technological attack. This prevents all outsiders (with hostile intent, or otherwise) from approaching the planet and was powerful enough to prevent Crash himself from teleporting to the planet in his search for the Bloodstone.

The Tombs

The Tombs is a stasis prison on one of Rya’s moons which was designed to contain the most ruthless and powerful criminals in the universe captured by the SENTINEL Order. It is manned by the 666^th Legion under the command of the ghoulish Captain Brand. The Tombs is rather infamous throughout the Galaxy and many outlaws fear being sent there. Only the most dangerous criminals are sent there, each sentenced to either life imprisonment or death. In its history no one has ever escaped from it.

The 666^th Legion which runs it is among the most feared Legions. Its Captain is one of the most powerful and easily the most ruthless in the Order’s ranks. The agents of the Legion are divided into Inquisitors, who are military police who have authority to investigate abuses of power by SENTINELs in other Legions, and jailors who operate the Tombs. These jailors can be noted by the sleeveless robes they wear over their armor, ornate helmets, and Power Staffs. These staffs are weapons which operate like tuning forks allowing the guards to focus Shine energy. While most SENTINELs have limited authority to kill, being more concerned with the capture of criminals and their being brought to Justice, those of the Punishment Legion have authority to kill criminals at their discretion within the walls of the Tombs.

Combat Forms

During their induction into the Order, Candidates are infused with raw Shine Energy by the Watchers, which will either re-write their Aura and alter their bodies or kill them. The Shine Energy forces open their Aura network and grants them a degree of Shine's time-based powers. For those that survive, they suddenly find themselves with the Auras of Class C races, with bodies infused with superhuman strength and fortitude. 

SENTINELs are expected to master at least one of the various Combat Forms of the Order.  Certain Legions specialize in one Combat Form over another, but by and large the expertise is left up to the individual SENTINEL what he wants to study.  All recruits learn what is called SENTINEL Combat Form I, which is the very basic style of all SENTINEL skills.  From there they are expected to move on to one of the other Combat Forms which have more specialized applications.  All Combat Forms are made up of 3 separate disciplines:

Power Skills

Easily the most important of skills taught to new SENTINELs is the control of the power they've been given.  While many were able to use their Aura, very few will be prepared for the level they now find themselves at.  In addition, the time powers they now possess are dangerous unless they learn how to properly use them.  Power Skill training is divided into two categories, Shine Skills and Aura Skills.

Shine Skills

The primary ability granted by the Shine Energy the use of time-based powers enabling one to the speed up, slow down or outright distort time.  While the total catalog of Shine techniques is quite extensive and will vary between the various combat forms, some of the better known are as follows:

Shining Blast: The trademark SENTINEL techique, the user gathers Shine Energy into their hands and releases it at an opponent. The power excites the molecules of what it hits and causes them to explode

Shining Strike: A melee attack where the user charges their hands of feet with Shine Energy and pummels their opponent. When struck with this energy has a similar effect to the Shining Blast, but the range is limited to what the SENTINEL can tactily hit.

Shining Arc: The SENTINEL gathers Shine Energy into his hand and makes a sweeping motion with his arm, clearing out a large swath in front of him.

Shining Shield: A technique which creates a shield of temporal energy which protects the SENTINEL from attacks.

Shining Stop: A technique which can freeze someone in time.

Shining Heal: Using Shine Power, the SENTINEL is able to rewind time for a wounded body to before the wound happened.

Shining Make: A skill that allows one to create matter from thin air. An enormously complex technique that most SENTINELs use to create their uniforms.

Shining Slash: A technique usable by SENTINEL Officers, Shine Energy is channeled into the Power Sword and amplified, then launched at a target in a sweeping arc.

Ultimate Attacks

Ultimate Attacks are only generally available to SENTINEL Officers.

Ultimate Shine: Similar to Shining Slash but on a far greater level. Solo channels incredible amounts of Shine Energy into his sword and projects it out to a great distance from dozens of feet to many miles. Anything caught in the sword's swing is either frozen in time or destroyed.

Overclock: A forbidden technique that the Watchers kept a secret even from the SENTINEL Order.  It multiplies the user's Aura for a short period, enabling them to inflict serious damage to opponents who are considerably stronger than them.  In Overclock a being's power level, strength, speed and senses are all vastly increased to SS Class levels, but the technique is enormously taxing and will leave the user exhausted and incapacitated afterward as that level of power was not meant to be used by mortals.  Because of this danger, the Watchers do not teach this technique to SENTINELs, keeping even the techniques existence a secret.  When Solo asked to be taught it in order to fight Drake the Watchers were greatly alarmed that he even knew about it.

Aura Skills

At the SENTINEL Academy, they are schooled in their Aura's use and even the most green recruit is skilled in all 3 forms of Aura use. The Order's set of Aura techniques evolved directly out of the training curriculum of the Holy Order's Knights and are fairly common among powerful races throughout the galaxy.  Some of the more common Aura abilities used by SENTINELs include:

Aura Charge: An Aura Boost skill that infuses a being's body with Aura energy, effectively creating an exoskeleton around them that increases their strength, speed and fortitude as well.  A being charged with Aura is able to bypass the physical powers of others and affect their substantial body.

Aura Projection: An offshoot of the Aura Charge technique where one projects their Aura as a percusive attack against others.  Usually this technique is infused into a Shine Attack and is almost never performed on its own.

Aura Awareness: An Aura Tuning ability that detects the flow of energy around oneself, detecting the Auras of others, how many there are, their identity or strength.  Can also be used to predict what is about to happen.

Aura Sense: The ability to detect the flow of energy coming from another being, enabling one to be able to read their thoughts or intentions.

Aura Tongue: A low level Aura Tuning technique which allows one to be able to communicate flawlessly with another.  Using Aura Tuning, a person is able to read the intentions of another when they make a statement, and are able to communicate their intentions clearly back.  Aura Tongue can also be used to read and write alien languages.

Aura Cutting: Usually just referred to as Cutting, it is a high level technique which enables lightning fast movement.  Cutting works by using the Aura to "cut" oneself out of space/time and re-insert themselves in at another place at the same instant, effectively being in two places at once.  Cutting has many levels, with some masters of the technique able to appear in dozens of places at once.

Fighting Skills

Each of the Combat Forms has a specific set of techniques for hand to hand fighting.  Each set also contains a set of sword techniques for the training of Officers in the use of their Power Swords.

Auxilliary Skills

Auxilliary Skills deal with the various minutae of the use and upkeep of SENTINEL Tools and Equipment.  In addition to the use of the SENTINEL Badge, use of Capture Balls, how to pilot and maintain a space pod, etc,  SENTINELs are expected to master a wide variety of survival skills and cultural protocol.

Notable SENTINELs

Capt. Solo: The current Captain of the SENTINEL 1st Legion and senior Captain of the entire Order is an elf named Solo, who been a SENTINEL Officer for 800 years and has run the Order's Veteran Legion for over 300 years. The third son of a powerful noble family in one of the Elven Kingdoms, Solo decided to forsake his royal rank in order to live a life of adventure in SENTINEL. He proved to be an especially able agent and brilliant commander, and it surprised no one when after 50 years he was selected by the Watchers to take the highest seat in the Order. Though his small physique and doddering personality tend to make him appear harmless at first glance, Solo is far and away the most powerful member of the Order. He has a jovial sense of humor which tends to disarm most who meet him, but once brought to anger they discover that Solo is a devoted servant of Justice who believes in the Watchers’ central principles of Justice. As 1st Legion Captain, command of the Order falls to Solo in the event that the Watchers are unavailable.

Lt. Greshka: His Lieutenant, Greshka, who is also more powerful than most of the Captains, has turned down the opportunity to command his own Legion out of loyalty to Solo and a desire to continue to serve under him until his death. Greshka’s life was saved by Solo, and since then he has been indebted to him, despite the Commander’s numerous attempts to release him from that debt. In most cases Solo leaves the actual running of the 1^st Legion to Greshka’s careful attention.

Capt. Amra: Regarded as SENTINELs trump card, Amra is the Order’s strongest warrior and his deployment is reserved for the most extreme circumstances. Amra is a superhuman from an unknown planet who has a long and storied career as an adventurer before joining SENTINEL. A giant of a man, Amra has platinum blonde hair that was worn long and shaggy in his mercenary days but he now wears in a crew cut, grey eyes, and a heavily scarred face. Even for a superhuman he was always extremely powerful, and known for carrying a variety of gigantic swords. In his youth he encountered the famous hero, Patrick and fought him to a standstill. Amra was brought to the attention of SENTINEL by the success of his mercenary guild. Amra was a member of an army called the Red Brotherhood who he fought with to gain fame and plunder. SENTINEL was mobilized to crush the army, but even with three Legions they were unable to defeat the Brotherhood’s Assault Brigade, lead by Amra. With even the Captains unable to defeat Amra, he was finally confronted by Captain Solo. Solo effortlessly cut Amra’s giant sword in two. Solo admitted that while Amra still had a great deal to learn, he was impressed by his cunning and prowess in fighting off even the other SENTINEL Captains. Over the objections of even the Watchers present, Solo asked the mercenary if he would be interested in fighting for SENTINEL, which Amra agreed to. After being exposed to Shine Energy, Amra became even stronger and thanks to his extensive experience and reputation he immediately won a Captain’s seat. The Power Sword he wields now was made from the pieces of the sword that Solo destroyed, reforged by SENTINEL. He was given command of the 13th Special Combat Legion. In the 20 years since he was brought into SENTINEL Amra has become one of its greatest and most feared warriors. While he’s generally viewed as gruff and unconcerned with procedure, he is beloved by troopers in his Legion and is fiercely loyal to Solo. He is the only SENTINEL Captain other than Solo himself to be rated as an S-Class fighter. While incredibly powerful and a skilled tactician, Amra has a tendency to lose himself in a battle. Unlike most members of the Order, Amra has a love for chaos and carnage, but this is tempered by his loyalty to Solo and desire to shield “normal people” from marauders like him. For all his uncouth and crass demeanor, Amra believes that only those who are willing to risk their lives are worth killing and will only fight those he deems as other strong warriors. Earlier, the celebrated hero Patrick had come into possession of the Blade of Rend, the God of War. The sword granted Patrick Rend’s power, but it took control of his personality. As he became a threat SENTINEL mobilized the 13th Legion and sent Amra to stop him. After a titanic battle, Amra succeeded getting the Sword away from Patrick and conquering it's power, freeing Patrick from its control. After mastering the Sword, Amra discovered that while wielding it he has SS Class power. For this reason in battle Amra does not often draw his sword, preferring instead to fight with his bare hands. After defeating Patrick and claiming the Sword’s power, Amra gained the nickname God of War.

Capt. Pando:

Capt. Brand: Head Warden of the Tombs, among SENTINELs Captain Brand is the most feared member of the Order. Brand cuts an imposing figure, being well over 7 feet tall with a powerful body and bandages covering the right side of his face and right arm.  Early in his career, he battled a medusa who managed to curse him to turn to stone.  He gained control over the petrification by tearing out one of her eyes and eating it, but not before it petrified half his body.  Thanks to this, he possesses the medusa’s ability which is able to petrify people with a stare, leaving them at his mercy. He takes his role quite seriously and does not tolerate the prisoners' bad behavior. As he has permission to execute any one of them he sees fit, he shows no hesitation to turn prisoners to stone. Brand also takes great pride in keeping the Tombs' reputation of being impenetrable and inescapable. He has a very harsh relationship with his Lieutenant, and most notice that they don’t seem to like eachother at all. While he also does not tolerate Severus’s loaded comments he himself is prone to use them against himself. His ruthlessness applies not only to the prisoners, but also to his own men, as seen berating a guard who was accidentally turned to stone by his powers. He will also not tolerate any of his own men who abuse their power, as he dismissed Severus’ predecessor for killing prisoners for fun and had him jailed in the Deep Hole. Despite the silly aspects of his personality, he is an extremely serious combatant, speaking little and never toying with his opponent. He has permission to kill any criminal within the walls of the Tombs. He cares little for them and will willingly use extreme measures against them. His tolerance for prisoners runs extremely low. When pushed to react, he turns people to stone. In turn, while most prisoners badmouth Brand in his presence, they also fear him for his ruthlessness, and in particular, his petrification technique.

Capt. O’Hare: Captain Scarlet O’Hare of the 16^th Legion is one of the most respected leaders in SENTINEL. She is a superhuman from Earth, who had been abducted by the Greys for experimentation as a little girl, but when they activated her Aura it proved to be stronger than they expected. She killed her abductors and wandered about the galaxy. By the time she was 10 she was found by a SENTINEL Sergeant who brought her to his precinct. She latched onto the Sergeant, and he took her as a foster daughter. However, the torturous experiments conducted on her, as well as the 5 years she lived in isolation, resulted in her becoming socially stunted. With the Sergeant’s help she learned how to interact with others, but she always maintained a detached personality that made her difficult to read for many. Noticing her prodigious intellect and incredible power, he took it upon himself to train her and when the time came, he enrolled her at the SENTINEL Academy which she managed to graduate in half the time. While she was in the Academy however, the Sergeant who raised her was killed by a criminal, and her first act upon becoming a SENTINEL was to bring this man to justice. She shot quickly through the ranks, and was assigned to the 16^th Legion under Captain Hefe Logan. As Logan was also a human, the Watchers put her there hoping he would have the easiest time training her. Logan, himself a superhuman who despite being born and living his early life on Earth had been raised on the planet Soohn, had an intellect, love of strategy and martial ability that challenged the young Scarlet, and she looked up to him immensely. The two bonded, and it got to the point when Hefe could read Scarlet’s emotions even when no one else could. After Hefe left the Order following the Hapes Disaster, Scarlet completed the Captain’s Trials and was awarded his Legion. Her Lieutenant was an Android, a pleasure model who had joined the Order some years before. Despite this, most who meet the pair assume that she is the android because of her robotic demeanor.

Scarlett has a very stoic and introverted personality, preferring simple body language rather than speaking. When prompted to speak, she does so in a very concise manner, always speaking in a monotone and displaying a dispassionate expression. She thinks very rationally, and finds it difficult to communicate with normal humans due to her intelligence and lack of empathy. She enjoys reading, and is seen reading a book in the majority of her appearances, typically of the science fiction or mystery genres. Scarlett displays an enjoyment of strategy games and develops a sense of humor, although her unchanging facial expressions make it near-impossible to discern whether she is joking or not. Despite her reserved manner, she is reliable and trustworthy, resulting in Hefe trusting her more than any other member of SENTINEL when he was with the Order. Though seemingly cold and devoid of emotions at first glance, Scarlet subtly shows a genuinely warm care and concern for her fellow SENTINEL members, Hefe in particular.

As an agent, Scarlet is extremely professional and capable. Her knowledge of SENTINEL Law and protocol is encyclopedic, and her martial ability makes her several times stronger than her Lieutenant, enabling her to smack him down when his antics are too much. Even after he left the Order and became an outlaw, she was still loyal to Hefe. Despite saying she would bring him in and execute him if ordered to, she saves his life numerous times and admits that she is still devoted to his safety.

Lt. Cuffs: An cyborg who insists that he was built as a “love machine.” Very little is known about him other than that he’s an android, a fact he proudly announces to everybody despite the fact that he's actually a cyborg. Cuffs tends to be lazy, boorish, and obsessed with vices and sex with organic life forms. However, this is a mask to disarm people. Cuffs is actually a very capable warrior with a nimble and incredibly observant mind. He enjoys playing off of his stoic Captain who will often play the straight man (or woman in this case) to his antics. Cuffs was once a criminal who had been captured and reprogrammed by Scarlet. He was recruited by her to help in defeating the boss of the crime ring he belonged to, and afterwards he expressed a desire to join SENTINEL. His battery was able to accept the infusion of Shine Energy and he afterwards became a valued member of the 13^th Legion. Even when he was a criminal he deplored using unnecessary violence. He also found himself strangely drawn to Captain O’Hare, and protected her during an ambush by other members of his group.

Capt. Wrath: Captain of the Black Legion, Gheris Wrath was originally the head of the Truan Secret Intelligence division before he decided to join SENTINEL. He shot through the ranks and eventually became Captain, a position he held for over 50 years. Over the course of his career he was engaged in many dangerous missions behind the scenes, working to prevent outright war with the Holy Order. He eventually decided to retire, and the Legion was handed over to the rising star in the Order, Johanna Kurr. Kurr lead the Legion for about 10 years before mysteriously going MIA. Her Lieutenant, Zena, was sent to find Wrath and let him know the Watchers had reactivated his commission. His first assignment was to investigate Kurr's death. In doing so, he discovered that she was actually a fairy named Bellona and that her death had been faked. He reported this to the Watchers but it was quickly made classified information. Since then his actions have been shrouded in secrecy, but when called upon he effortlessly defeats whoever challenges him. Wrath appears to be in his late middle age and is very grizzled, with shoulder length red hair and a constant 5 o'clock shadow. He is often seen chomping on a cigar. He lost his right eye in his time spying in the Holy Order, and wears an eyepatch.

Lt. Zena: Second in command of the Black Legion, Zena was once raised as an assassin by a monastic order on her home planet of Noda. This Order had a relationship with the Watchers, and it was not unusual that members were occasionally recruited into SENTINEL. Her skills brought her to the attention of the Legion's Captain, Johanna Kurr, who took her under her wing. In Kurr, Zena found a kindred spirit and she looked up to Kurr immensely. She therefore took it very hard when Kurr went missing. She was given the task by the Watchers to hunt down a man by the name of Gheris Wrath and deliver to him a message. She faithfully obeyed, and was shocked to find that the message was Wrath's reactivation. Wrath brought her with him on his investigation into Kurr's alleged death, but decided to hide from her that Kurr was in fact a fairy named Bellona who had faked her death to get out of the Order.

Capt. Raisa:

Capt. Belit: Captain of the 20^th Legion, Belit is perhaps the most famous member of the Order. Like Amra, Belit was a powerful mercenary and bounty hunter of great renown before joining SENTINEL. She was a wandering sorceress who was typically called the Walking Calamity because of the damage her spells would cause. Belit is a tall and overly-buxom woman who wore a leather bikini-like garment before joining the Order, and has a laugh that could cause whole towns to evacuate just to get away from the sound of it. However, Belit takes pride in her laughter, and may take offense at those whose laughter is not like hers. She is regarded by many men in the Order as an idol, though those close to her know a more irritating side to her. Her massive ego and somewhat lacking common sense means she often gets herself (and her Legion) into trouble or just plain screws up, leading many to question how it is she ever managed to get into SENTINEL, let alone achieve the rank of Captain. Belit is actually old friends with Amra and was instrumental in petitioning the Watchers to recruit him.

Capt. Cole: A half-elf born on the planet Doma, Ash Cole is the Captain of the 4^th Legion and widely regarded as the best swordsman in the Order.  He was a foundling, discovered by the King's Blademaster Jin the Fireball who was on a mission.  Jin took the child and raised him, tutoring him in the ways of swordsmanship.  Ash possessed a natural talent and inherited his adoptive father's cursed blade.  He joined the Kingsguard and gained great fame on Doma for his skill, eventually becoming a renouned hero across the entire sector.  He became close friends with the King's nephew and fellow Kingsguard Dan, but was later betrayed by him.  Long jealous of Ash's prowess and coveting the Throne for himself, he poisoned the King and Blademaster and framed Ash for the crime.  Ash lost his eye in the coup, but eventually managed to escape with his life.   Eventually he succeeded in freeing his people from Dan's tyranny and ultimately gained his revenge on him, taking Dan's Holy Sword as a trophy.  Afterwards he left Doma and took to wandering the spaceways.  When a SENTINEL team was in pursuit of a dangerous mission, his aide was requested by his childhood friend Mera Jade, who had joined the Order before Dan's coup and risen to become Lieutenant of the 4^th Legion.  Ash performed so admirably that he was invited to join the Order, where he quickly rose through the ranks and became a Captain.  Ash is notable in that in conjunction with his Power Sword he wears his Doman Swords as well, often alternating between them in fights.  He has white hair and a scar over his missing left eye.  He is generally regarded as gruff and has a scruffy appearance, rarely bothering to shave and with his long hair tied into a messy ponytail.  As a Captain he is said to be lazy with a tendency to shirk his duties, often pushing them off onto his Lieutenant (which he often did when they were both on the Kingsguard on Doma), but he is extremely protective of his men and is often on the front lines to shield them from powerful enemies.  Even Mera knows not to follow him when he runs off on missions knowing she would only get in his way.  Widely regarded as one of the strongest Captains in the Order, Ash Cole is one of the few who can be called an S-Class and is greatly feared and respected.

Lt. Jade: Mera Jade is the daughter of the legendary purran mercenary Zander Jade.  He had been hired by the King of Doma as a warmaster, and when he came to the planet he brought little Mera with him.  It was here that she met a young Ash Cole and the two became friends, eventually harboring romantic feelings for eachother which neither explored.  She trained alongside him under the Blademaster, becoming a powerful soldier though her skills paled compared to Ash's.  She eventually left Doma and joined SENTINEL where she managed to become Lieutenant of the 4^th Legion.  When her Legion was tasked with the apprehension of a powerful criminal, she decided to hire Ash to aid them.  Over the course of the mission she and Ash realized their feelings for one another.  For his valor he was invited to join the Order, and much to Mera's annoyance he was quickly promoted past her.  Despite this she is unerringly loyal to him, though she does occasionally get fed up with his laziness and aloof attitude.  Mera is well known for her combat prowess and loyalty to her troops and the Order, but is hampered by her ditzy personality.  It was for this reason that the Watchers elected to name Ash as Captain instead of her.

Sgt. Kermit: Kermit is a SENTINEL Sergeant from the planet Kroka. He is a Kiff, a race of humanoid toads. According to Capt. Pando, Kermit’s service record rates him as satisfactory, and he is regarded as a capable SENTINEL. What he is most famous for though, was his failure to capture the Bones Brothers and Thuro following their successful burglary of the 15^th Legion’s precinct, and his humiliating loss to the Earth Saran, John Nash. His panic following his beating at the saran’s hands brought the attention of all the galactic powers onto Earth.

Sgt. Walter Luger: Luger is a native of Epic who was recruited by the SENTINEL Order immediately after the Great War that had engulfed the Planet. During the war he had met the hero Patrick who had a profound impact on him. When a SENTINEL crashed on Epic, Luger helped him complete his mission. Impressed by his mettle, the SENTINEL brought Luger with him to Rya where he demonstrated the traits the Watchers look for in recruits. He graduated from the Academy, and found himself assigned to the 14^th Legion. Since his home planet was in the sector of space the 14^th Legion patrolled, Luger regularly doubled back to his planet, using it as a base. When Epic came under assault by the Greens and Patrick returned from his exile in space, Luger was among those he recruited to protect the planet. After driving them off he accepted membership in the team Patrick put together called the Crusaders. Over the decade he served with them he rose to the rank of Sergeant and shared many adventures, though his duties as a SENTINEL occasionally kept him away during missions. It was during one of these times that Cain came to Epic looking to pick a fight with Patrick and caused widespread damage across the planet. Thereafter he decided to stick closer to home, and was present when Crash passed by the planet following his successful recovery of the Bloodstone. In the ensuing battle Luger was brutally killed by the God King. Luger was known for his no-nonsense professionalism and gruff military manner. He was very much an “old war horse” who was nonetheless admired by all who knew him.

Ira Dread

Sgt. Ira Dread: Like Luger, Dread was also a native of Epic, but after completing the Academy and doing a stint in one of the Patrol Legions, he was assigned to the 00 Legion becoming one of the Order’s finest special agents. He had the best record of any operative and was one of the most respected agents in the Black Legion. When Luger was killed fighting Crash, the Watchers decided to have a permanent SENTINEL presence on Epic to monitor the superhumans evolving on that planet. Since Dread was a native of the planet, they offered him the job and he accepted (in actuality, the Watchers discovered that he was hiding his strength and told him to either accept the Epic assignment or a promotion to Captain. Since he wanted to avoid the responsibility of a Captain posting he accepted the transfer to Epic). He was transferred to the 14^th Legion where his loose attitude was hard met by his new comrades, both in the Legion and in the Crusaders. His methods and demeanor were very different from Luger’s. Where Luger was hyper disciplined and on top of everything, Dread seemed aloof and distant, barely interested in anything happening around him. However, despite this demeanor, Dread proved himself infinitely more skilled than his predecessor, matching wits with the Phantom and even managing to frustrate Patrick during a test of his strength. He would regularly say that he was from the Black Legion, and that in order to survive in that Legion you had to be used to fighting people many times smarter or more powerful than you. Dread was from one of the savage tribes on Epic, and wears his hair long and shaggy. Much to the annoyance of the other Crusaders, Dread generally refuses to talk about his previous posting, saying anything relating to the Black Legion is “classified.” However, he will often answer the question he was asked much later in the form of an anecdote. A secret which Dread has kept from everyone is that he is actually the son of the 00 Legion's Captain, Gheris Wrath. During Wrath's retirement, he'd passed through Epic and had a brief relationship with a savage woman. According to the woman, he'd left without ever knowing she was pregnant, and she'd regularly talk about what a great man his father was to the young Dread. He has stated that he's uninterested in revealing to his former Captain that he's his son, and he's not even sure that Wrath is aware that he ever had a child.

SENTINEL Yuri Tan: The SENTINEL Yuri Tan is of particular interest because of a prophecy given to the Watchers that one day the future of the Order would depend on her. A SENTINEL of the 14^th Legion, 5^th Squad, Yuri is an elf maiden hailing from the planet Pan in the North Galaxy. She was the daughter of Tanis Tan, a SENTINEL Sergeant who trained the young Yuri in martial arts so she could protect herself in his absence. Because of his duties, he was often away from the planet and she was often left in the care of her Uncle. Her father fell in the line of duty and his loss hit the young Yuri hard. She grew to be an extremely precocious and mischievous young woman and a taste for adventure and getting into fights. Though small for her age, she had a big personality and was very popular. Unlike other elf maidens, who acted very demure and wore their hair very long, Yuri was a tomboy and wore her honey blond hair very short and unkempt.

The Elves of Pan were often victims of Ogre raiding parties who would kidnap young elves for slaves or food, elves being a delicacy on some Ogre worlds. In her youth, Yuri was playing in the forests with her friends when one such Ogre raid occurred. Her close friend Tana was kidnapped, and Yuri went after her when all else had given her up for dead. Through a combination of skill and courage, Yuri managed to rescue Tana and make her way back to her village. Once there, she was approached by a friend of her father's who had taken over his old post in SENTINEL. Impressed that the daughter had inherited her father’s courage, he recruited Yuri into SENTINEL. Yuri was taken to Rya where she was infused with Shine Power and graduated from the Academy. She was assigned to the 14^th Legion just as her father had been, and like most SENTINELs set about patrolling space using her home planet as a base of operations.

She is first encountered when Cain is testing his strength following the death of the Holy Ghost. While Cain, who was travelling incognito, was relaxing in a bar, she entered searching for a bounty. A skirmish ensued while the bounty tried to escape covered by his friends. Yuri gets held up fighting the thugs, but before the bounty managed to get away he was knocked out by Cain. Yuri thanked Cain for his help, and after putting her bounty into a capture ball she decided to hang out with him and drink. She spent the next few hours becoming increasingly intoxicated and eventually slept with the Dark Prince.

In the pillow talk that followed, she proudly talked about her Legion and Squad. She talked about her Sergeant Walter Luger and the Crusaders of the Planet Epic that he worked with. She spoke excitedly about the Omnian called Patrick who was rumored to be the most powerful being in the entire Galaxy, and this sparked Cain's interest. The following morning, Yuri awoke to find Cain had vanished. In checking the updated bounty list she discovered that the man she’d just slept with was the Dark Prince. When word reached her that Cain had gone to Epic to pick a fight with the Omnian Patrick and the amount of carnage he’d caused, she decided to keep her meeting with him under wraps. Years later, the two would meet again during the Extermination Order of Earth. The 14^th Legion was among those that took part in the battle with the Horde. The group Yuri was with was slaughtered by the former SENTINEL Captain Gideon. He decided to rape her before killing her and tore off her armor, but before he could do anything to her Cain interfered. Cain recognized her (but could not remember her name referring to her instead as “SENTINEL girl”), and advised that she run away as quickly as she could. When he realized she was frozen in place by the intensity of the Aura that Cain and Gideon were throwing at eachother, he instantly moved her to a different location and returned to the battle. She was left quivering in fear at the intensity of the Auras she had just felt, and remarked that she never dreamed anybody could be that powerful.

Former SENTINELs

Hefe Logan: Former Captain of the 111th Legion, Hefe is a superhuman from Soohn. After joining the Order he demonstrated incredible cunning and talent, and was fast tracked to becoming an officer. After a short stint as a Lieutenant, he was promoted to Captain by the Watchers at the recommendation of Captain Solo. He was one of the rising stars of the Order until he was disgraced in the Hapes Disaster. He, alongside Captains Gideon and Max Bassmann, attempted to apprehend or kill the Outlaw King, Undart. Captain Gideon declared the mission a loss and issued an Extermination Order for Hapes. The planet and everyone on it was obliterated, and in the aftermath Gideon put the blame solely on the two junior Captains. Hefe afterwards left the Order in disgust, reuniting with his younger brother Bruno and becoming a mercenary. He would eventually run into his old friend Thuro at the Frehm Arena, and would end up getting drawn into the battle with Crash and earning a place as one of the Magnificent 7.

Bellona El'Judi (aka Johanna Kurr): A Fairy from the planet Avalon, Bellona was a survivor of the Saran pogrom that exterminated her people. She joined SENTINEL at one point in the hopes of greater power, assuming the identity of an elf named Johanna Kurr to do so. She was assigned to the mysterious Black Legion, which handles the Order's special ops, and proved herself a talented agent. She eventually succeeded Gaheris Wrath as the Legion's Captain, taking another war orphan named Zena under her wing. After some time however, she discovered the Divai Warriors and came to respect them greatly. Wishing to train with them, she fabricated her "death" as Johanna Kurr and joined the Divai. She would later leave the Divai in her attempt to gain vengeance against the sarans, only to be dissauded from the path by fellow Fairy, Thuro Al'Baster, and would instead gain notoriety as a member of the Magnificent 7.

Ernie Hammer: The former Captain of the 32nd Legion, Ernie Hammer was the most brilliant scientist the Order had ever seen. He had his start as a human from Earth, who during his time in the U.S. Navy was tapped to become an agent of the Government's Extraterrestrial Affairs department known as AEGIS. While an agent for AEGIS he was loaned out to other alien governments, eventually impressing SENTINEL and being offered a place with them. Upon his infusion with Shine Energy, he developed a series of risky methods to increase his Aura output and intelligence, eventually becoming powerful enough to earn a Captain's seat. While investigating techniques for warping space-time, he accidentally opened the door for a series of new and terrifying weapons. Fearing their use, he destroyed his research and fled from the Order, hiding on the desert planet Seere.

Van Maximo: Van Maximo was once famous as the Greatest SENTINEL, and was former Captain of the 43rd Legion. He was an adherent to a philosophy called Absolute Order, which exceeded the ambitions of SENTINEL and prompted him to seize control of his patrol area and rule it as a dictator. When the Watchers caught wind of what he was doing, he and his accomplices in his Legion were captured (most of his SENTINELs had no idea what their Captain was doing). Maximo was stripped of his rank and was being sent to the Tombs when followers of his sprang him in transit and they fled. He reinvented himself as a Warlord in the North Galaxy. Since then he has eluded attempts by his old Order to recapture or assassinate him, and has continued to be one of the greatest powers in the North Kingdom.

Trivia

- The SENTINEL Order is the only force of the All Union for which the sarans have any respect.  While the general populace of the All Union largely see them as noble defenders, the sarans know them as a bloodthirsty killers.

- Cain had long been suspected of the slaughter of the 6th Legion, something which upon travelling with him aboard the Rocco II Hefe always tried to get out of him.  After one night drinking, Cain finally admitted to the act and to Hefe's surprise spoke about them admirably.  Of them he said "they didn't run from battle" which among sarans is the highest praise possible.

- In the creation of the Order, the Watchers drew on legends of blue armored warriors who would appear in times of great crisis and defeat evil. After the Watchers took over Ultima and moved SENTINEL Command there, they repurposed the Order to act as the Guardians of the Timeline. In sending their warriors to various points in time, they discovered that the blue armored warriors of legend who they based the Order on were in fact always the SENTINEL Order.