Sentinels of the Veil
"I swear to serve with my life and my honour Civilisation, Empire, Emperor, House and the Sentinels of the Veil, and to uphold the Five Virtues. I swear to fight the darkness even unto death. I swear to obey my superiors unless they harm Humanity, Empire, Emperor, House or the Sentinels of the Veil."
This Oath is sworn by every member of the Sentinels of the Veil, an organisation dedicated to holding at bay 'the darkness', a realm that exists, like hyperspace, outside of normal space, and to fight its inhabitants, which the people of the Empire call Demons.
Little is known about the Demons and the inky blackness in which they dwell. The Empire discovered them nearly half a century past, and since that time but scant information has become public knowledge; they do not belong here, appearing only site of catastrophic accidents where the technology of the Legacy has gone awry, and when they come they destroy or corrupt everything they encounter.
The Sentinels are private individuals, united in a desire to combat the darkness for the good of the Empire. They enjoy the nominal support of the Imperial House, but ultimately the might of the Sentinels lies in the skills and resources of its members.
The Sentinels maintain small observation outposts on the worlds of Forlox and Tentos, where expanding pockets of dark energry cause their scholars considerable concern.
Organisation
The Sentinels divide their members into five Holds, each of which has a specific role to play in the groups duties.
The Hold of Courage
The Hold of Courage officially comprises the space forces of the Sentinels. Effectively however it has dominion over most conventional military forces at the disposal of the Sentinels. The vast majority of Hold members are commoners in the private service of a Noble Sentinel.
The Hold of Loyalty
The Hold of Loyalty incorporates the group's Advocates, who stand ready to underhold the honour of the Sentinels and prosecute enemies within the Empire. Being responsible for the honour of the organisation, the Hold has come to maintain the Sentinel's public relations with the rest of the Empire.
The Hold of Chivalry
Members of this hold style themselves as Knights and keep to a strict code of behaviour in order to preserve their honour and remain pure of heart while they seek servants of the darkness. The Chivalric Knights are the investigative wing of the Sentinels, following up rumours of supernatural occurences throughout the Empire.
The Hold of Strength
The Hold of Strength is dedicated to members of the Order with 'unusual' personal abilities. Psychics interested in joining the Sentinels are ushered into this Hold, as are those whose bodies have somehow come to be enhanced beyond the human norm. Those in the Hold often train diligently to improve their abilities and learn how best to use them in the field. For obvious reasons the Hold maintains strong relations with the Imperial School of Psychic Study, and also has several members who are Chirurgeons.
The Hold of Knowledge
The Hold of Knowledge forms the smallest group of the Sentinels and operates with a slightly confused agenda. Most potential members of the Hold are academics who wish to understand the nature of the threat posed by the darkness and so learn how best to confront it. The other Holds of the Sentinels, however, consider such thinking dangerous, and maintain that the true role of the Hold of Knowledge should be to control and restrict access to 'dangerous' information.
Ranks
According to the wishes of its founding members, the Sentinels of the Veil place a strong distinction between those who have dealt with demons face to face, and those who have yet to face the foe.
Since demonic outbreaks are rare, with only a handful of them occuring in the forty years since the organisation's inception, then the vast majority of the Sentinels are currently 'Untested'. Occasionally a young Sentinel will seek out an encounter by journeying close to the disaster zone on Forlox, but such behaviour is not encouraged.
Rank 1: Untested
Rank 2: Tested
Rank 3: Guardian
Rank 4: Head of Hold