The Protectorate

The Protectorate is the Stellarborne defensive unit whose job it is to protect Stellarborne civilians and city-ships from any hostile threat. The Protectorate operates under a standard millitaristic hierarchy, where ranks determine the chain of command. The Protectorate is also surprisingly lightly armed, relying just as much on their Willpower abilities as they do on physical arms.

### Orders

The Protectorate separates its different unit types in groups they call orders. Each order is a specialized unit with specific purposes, different cultures and command structures.

#### Scouts

In order to ensure the safety of uncharted worlds, Scouts are often called in to partake in Dive missions, in which a group embarks and assesses the environment. Scouts are highly efficient explorers, capable of incredibly fast flight, advanced in-air maneuvers and extensive training in spotting techniques which allows them to detect points of interests or threats from far away. Scouts are also trained in survival techniques and basic combat, letting them easily stay safe in even the most hostile environments.

Scouts might be quick and nimble, but lack the strength and tactical awareness of their peers. They aren't as physically or mentally strong as Lightguards or as disciplined as Peacekeepers, as evident by their rebelious culture and loose hierarchial system. Most of their command structure is based on respect instead of ranks, which is reflected in their uniform. The most striking feature of a Scout are their incredibly long crimson scarves, which increases in length the more experienced a Scout is. Most other orders scoff at Scouts for their lack of discipline, but Scouts are more personally invested in the wellbeing of their fellow members, often going out of their way to ensure the safety of their friends despite throwing themselves in harms way. They are known to consider their fellow Scouts more like family than colleagues.

#### Lightguard

The main unit of The Protectorate is the venerable Lightguard. This order is the Stellarborne's main defensive unit, and is tasked to ensure the survival of their species at all costs. Lightguard are incredibly strong both physically and mentally, a standard which is upheld by an extremely tough training program, as well as a rigorous exercise schedule when off duty. Lightguard are highly skilled in all forms of combat, from close quarters, to use of firearms and Willpower. Though not as strong as some Magisters, their Willpower repertoire is still quite solid.

Lightguard follow a rigid command structure, with strict discipline expected of all members of the order.

#### Peacekeepers

The Protectorate employs an internal force across Stellarborne cities in order to maintain peace within their own society as well. This order, called Peacekeepers, are highly respected for their sense of justice and resistance to use force unless necessary. Peacekeepers are also forbidden to carry arms, a restriction imposed after tragedies experienced during Ark's civil war. To become a Peacekeeper, Stellarborne are required to go through an extremely difficult and arduous training period. This process is notorious for disqualifying many from joining the order, but it also ensures that only the best qualified individuals are allowed into their ranks. Even though the process is difficult, it isn't mentally or physically difficult, but rather tests a Stellarborne's judgement. The strongest are not necessarily the best suited for the job.

Even so, Peacekeepers are incredibly skilled fighters, boasting an impressive set of talents from handling of weaponry to Willpower techniques. Peacekeepers are often used as extra muscle should the Lightguard need it. Not only are Peacekeepers revered in the public eye, but are also highly respected among the other Protectorate orders. Within their own ranks, Peacekeepers work in teams of two, and rarely if ever work alone. These teams will never be separated under any circumstances. Even when called in to assist other orders they travel together or not at all. These teams work so tightly together that sometimes, a rare phenomena is known to occur where the teams' telepathic force becomes so entangled that they are nearly indistinguishable from one another.

#### The Vigilance

The upper echelon of The Protectorate is an order known as The Vigilance. This order is reserved for the nine most powerful or highly skilled members of the Stellarborne society. The Vigilance works closely with the Protectorate commander Sunray, who is essentially the unofficial tenth Vigilance member. Though the order strives to bring in representatives from all Protectorate orders, an invitation to join The Vigilance can be extended to any member of Stellarborne society if they prove themselves worthy.

Current members of The Vigilance are as follows:

* Sunray, Commander of The Protectorate
* Ri Vi, Leader of the Scouts
* Vylet, Bladedancer of the Lightguard
* Rodu, The Strategist
* Syon, The Unbreakable
* Blink, The Gunslinger
* Aureatte, Warlock of The Magisters
* Vecs, The Wordsmith

#### The Hidden

The fifth unofficial order of The Protectorate is a shadow group of devoted fighters dedicated to the protection of the Elyon. They do not adhere to The Protectorate command structure, instead being in direct service to the Elyon. They also act as a covert operations and intelligence gathering force, making sure to keep the Elyon informed of the goings on around their city. The Hidden never intervene in any matters unless they are directly ordered to do so, and even then, they make sure no one knows they were there to begin with. The Hidden is completely without command structure, and only contain very few members compared to the other orders. Instead of a hierarchy, each member only takes direct orders from the Elyon. Despite this, they are experts at cooperation, and can seamlessly and effortlessly organize themselves for any task.

The Hidden are incredibly strong in all aspects, able to take down any threat as long as it is done stealthily. However, they are not efficient at taking down larger targets and are best utilized with assasination or sabotage. The Hidden are not the be-all end-all order of The Protectorate, however. Their small numbers mean they are not suited for crowd control or large-scale battles, and they are not good at dealing with the public, preferring instead to work with their hands or minds rather than their mouth.

Joining The Hidden is arguably an even harder task than joining the Peacekeepers. Not only are individuals required to have access to knowledge about the order and then find one of their members or convince the Elyon themselves, but joining The Hidden means stripping themselves of all identity and effectively faking their own death. Any Hidden are not allowed to exist, otherwise they risk knowledge of the order leaking to the public. Of course, an Elyon might choose to just not utilize the order at all, in which they remain loyal but dormant. Multiple Elyons throughout history has decided to suspend the operations of The Hidden, in which its members assumed fake identities and lived normal lives until activated once again.

### The Barrel

The Protectorate headquarters is presently situated on Ark, in a massive colosseum-like structure called the Barrel. This is a massive, hollow building populated by several, free-floating island serving as training grounds. These islands can be moved around and pieced together to create larger surfaces, and parked inside the wall if not in use. The wall of The Barrel, which arguably is the building itself, is around 500 meters in height. The wall contains most of the Headquarters' internal facilities like armories, barracks, launch bays and hangars, as well as halls dedicated to each of The Protectorates orders.

Finally, the Barrel is the only structure within Ark which is able to separate its gravitational tether and move independently of the city. The Barrel is fully capable of lightspeed travel just like its mothership, however it cannot refuel its energy reserves without linking back to the Telstar power grid. Separating the Barrel has its strategical advantages and disadvantages. To ensure that Ark is never without protection, an external barracks structure is populated by the Peacekeeper order before the Barrel departs. This function is rarely used unless Stellarborne needs to head into extremely hostile territory, or there is another advantage to separate.