Chapter 26: O.R.D.O.

O.R.D.O.

The name carried weight in every country where Awakeners existed.

The Overwatch Regulation & Defense Organization was the primary governing body responsible for maintaining order between ordinary civilization and the supernatural world that had grown around it during the last fifty years.

It was not a Guild, nor was it built for profit. O.R.D.O. did not compete for Dungeon ownership, recruit elite Raiders to monopolize Monster Cores, or send expedition teams into the Beyond in search of legendary Relics. Its purpose was far more fundamental.

It registered Awakeners, issued Raider and Walker Licenses, approved and regulated Guilds, classified Dungeons, monitored unstable Dimensional Gates, and maintained the official records that governments and corporations relied upon whenever supernatural activity crossed into public life.

If an uncontrolled Mana Beast appeared near a populated district, O.R.D.O. responded. If an Awakened criminal used a Divine Rune to massacre civilians, O.R.D.O. hunted them.

If an illegal company trafficked unregistered monster materials, counterfeit Relics, or prohibited Beyond resources, O.R.D.O. investigated it.

When a Gate destabilized, when a Dungeon threatened to rupture, when supernatural disasters overwhelmed local authorities, O.R.D.O. was usually the institution standing between the incident and complete chaos.

That influence extended far beyond enforcement. Every legal Raider operating inside a Dungeon carried a license issued through O.R.D.O.

Every Walker wishing to conduct recognized activity within the Beyond passed through its registry. Guilds could not legally expand, purchase certain classes of supernatural resources, or participate in regulated Dungeon operations without O.R.D.O. approval.

The organization was simply too deeply rooted into the structure of the supernatural world. If something involved Awakeners, Dungeons, the Beyond, Mana Beasts, or supernatural law, O.R.D.O. was almost certainly involved somewhere.

Zenith City was a sprawling metropolis of glass towers, elevated highways, corporate districts, residential sectors, and enormous commercial zones.

Jet had lived in the city his entire life, but there were places within Zenith that might as well have belonged to another country when compared to the modest district where he and Inez lived.

None demonstrated that separation more clearly than the Awakener District. The automated taxi had dropped him several blocks away from O.R.D.O. headquarters, and the moment Jet stepped onto the broad pedestrian avenue, the atmosphere changed completely.

The buildings were taller, the streets wider, the security heavier, and almost every major storefront seemed designed specifically for people who possessed Divine Runes.

Massive Guild headquarters occupied entire blocks, their logos displayed across mirrored towers large enough to be seen from kilometers away.

Professional Raiders appeared across gigantic digital advertisements wearing polished combat armor while endorsements for weapons, supplements, recovery potions, and Dungeon survival packages constantly flashed above the streets.

Further ahead, a showroom displayed swords, spears, monster-hunting firearms, and Mana-reactive ammunition behind reinforced glass. Jet continued through the district with both hands inside the pockets of his black tactical hoodie, his white eyes moving slowly from one establishment to another.

There were pharmacies specializing entirely in Mana-based medicine, survival companies selling portable shelters and Beyond harvesting kits, monster-material exchanges where Awakeners could sell carcass components, and private training facilities promising specialized instruction for every major weapon class.

Huge holographic screens floated between buildings, changing advertisements every few seconds. One displayed bold crimson letters reading:

BUYING LESSER MONSTER CORES — PREMIUM MARKET RATE.

Another promoted:

CERTIFIED DUNGEON EQUIPMENT — 30% SECOND AWAKENING DISCOUNT.

A third flashed images of several heavily armed men and women beneath the words:

GUILD RECRUITMENT — NEWLY AWAKENED RAIDERS WANTED.

Above the avenue, elevated transit rails cut between the towers while armored delivery drones moved overhead, carrying sealed crates of monster materials from one licensed warehouse to another under constant O.R.D.O. tracking throughout the entire district.

For a moment, Jet slowed near the edge of the sidewalk, staring through the transparent front wall of a monster-material trading company. Several Awakeners stood inside placing different harvested components onto scanning tables while digital values appeared above them.

He instinctively thought about the tendons, hide, and incisors he had harvested from the Vorpal Bunny, followed immediately by the other carcasses he had abandoned during his first Descent because he had been too poorly equipped to process them.

The memory made his mouth twitch.

"I really was stupid," he muttered under his breath, shaking his head before moving on. If he had bothered to prepare properly before entering the Beyond, he could have returned with considerably more than a few Monster Cores and one Relic.

It was a mistake he had no intention of repeating.

The farther he walked, the more obvious it became that the Awakener District was an economy unto itself.

Ordinary people still moved through the streets, but they were surrounded by individuals carrying weapons openly, wearing Guild insignias, or displaying the subtle confidence of people accustomed to dangerous environments.

A broad-shouldered woman walked past Jet with a massive black sword strapped diagonally across her back while two younger men followed behind carrying equipment cases. Here, those things were normal.

Then Jet reached the end of the avenue and finally saw the structure that dominated the entire district.

The Zenith City Headquarters of O.R.D.O.

Jet stopped walking.

The tower rose from the center of an enormous open plaza, occupying nearly an entire city block with a broad foundation built from gigantic slabs of dark reflective material.

Vertical silver lines divided the obsidian-colored exterior into massive geometric sections, running upward for more than a hundred floors before the structure gradually narrowed toward the sky. Near the upper levels, the main body separated into several angular sections surrounding a central needle-like spire that disappeared into the low cloud layer above Zenith City.

Unlike the Guild towers surrounding it, there were no animated advertisements, no celebrity Raider endorsements, and no oversized displays advertising wealth or prestige.

The building did not need any of that. Its scale alone communicated authority.

A gigantic metallic insignia had been integrated directly into the center of the tower’s front face, extending across multiple floors as though the symbol had been forged into the building itself.

Below it, enormous reinforced doors several stories tall opened and closed at steady intervals while continuous streams of people moved through security barriers at the base of the structure.

Above the main entrance, three lines of bright silver lettering were embedded into the dark exterior.

O.R.D.O.

OVERWATCH REGULATION & DEFENSE ORGANIZATION.

ZENITH CITY HEADQUARTERS.

Jet remained standing near the edge of the plaza, quietly staring upward until the brim of his cap almost touched the back of his neck.

A strange feeling settled inside his chest. It wasn’t fear, and it wasn’t exactly excitement either. It was simply the uncomfortable awareness of how absurdly different his position had become in such a short period of time.

In his previous life, this district had always belonged to other people.

Real Awakeners came here. Raiders came here. Walkers came here. Guild executives, professional hunters, wealthy traders, and people with enough strength or money to participate in the supernatural world came here. Jet had been none of those things.

He had been the powerless worker carrying equipment behind low-level Guild teams, the guy standing outside while licensed Awakeners entered restricted buildings, the ordinary human who knew exactly where the invisible line separating him from their world had been drawn.

Even wandering too deeply into the Awakener District had once made him feel like someone entering a place where he had no business being.

His fingers moved slightly inside the pocket of his hoodie.

Beneath the heavy black fabric covering his body were ten Divine Runes.

Ten SSS-Rank Divine Runes.

One month ago, at least according to everyone else, Jethro Saint-Clair would have looked at this building and known without question that he did not belong anywhere near the world it represented. From Jet’s perspective, that helplessness had lasted ten years.

Today, things were different.

Jet lowered his head again and looked toward the entrance. Awakeners constantly passed through the enormous doors.

Some wore full armor with weapons secured across their backs. Others looked completely ordinary in business suits or casual clothing. Several carried Guild insignias, while others were surrounded by assistants carrying tablets and equipment cases.

Nearby, two young newly awakened men were loudly arguing over registration paperwork while their mother tried to silence them, and a heavily scarred woman leaned against one of the barriers drinking from a bottle as though the gigantic institution behind her were nothing more than another office building.

Jet watched them for several seconds, then slowly inhaled.

The air entered his lungs cleanly.

His mouth curved into a small smile.

"Guess it’s finally my turn."

He stepped forward, joining the steady river of Awakeners moving across the plaza. With every step, the enormous reinforced doors grew larger in front of him until they filled his entire field of vision.

Jet adjusted the brim of his cap one final time, kept his tattoos completely hidden beneath the black layers covering his body, and followed the crowd through the gigantic entrance of O.R.D.O. Headquarters.