UNSC Department of Strategic Intelligence

The UNSC Directorate of Strategic Intelligence, informally known as Strategic Intelligence (STRATINTEL), and colloquially known as "S.I." or "Sierra India", is one of the five major directorates of the UNSC Office of Naval Intelligence. Its responsibilities are manifold, but subsumed under these are a variety of clandestine and paramilitary operations, unconventional warfare, austere field operations, interdiction of high-value targets, and long-term strategic planning for galactic affairs and UNSC involvement in these. First activated in 2553 in the aftermath of the Treaty of Voi by then-Director of Naval Intelligence Margaret O. Parangosky, Strategic Intelligence was first a clandestine special access program ("black project") under the direction of Brigadier General James Ackerson, thought to be killed during the Battle of Mare Erythraeum. 
Within months of its conception, Strategic Intelligence featured saliently in high-profile galactic affairs. Its Chief of Operations, Rear Admiral Elaine Lujayne, was assigned to the joint UNSC/Covenant effort to recover the hijacked Sangheili frigate Steadfast Faith in the CAM-327-17 System, after which Admiral Lujayne was detained aboard an autonomous Forerunner dreadnaught. Contemporaneous with this, a Strategic Intelligence paramilitary field team led by Lieutenant Commander Wakes found on Carinae-312D in the NGC 3576 nebula a Forerunner construct that precipitated the Memory Crisis — a UNSC massacre, albeit brief. 
Thereafter, Strategic Intelligence was officially sanctioned as the fifth and newest Directorate of the Office of Naval Intelligence. Although few are intimated with the details, the Directorate of Strategic Intelligence has since played a prominent role in the Post-War politocomilitary situation, both in handling increased insurgency on the home front and manipulating Covenant politics abroad.
==Conception==
Strategic Intelligence was created after the Human-Covenant War as the perfect "black magic" problem to the complex politicomilitary situation of the post-War era; politicians of the UNSC Defense Council and other administrative bodies often had sophisticated and dirty political solutions that could be easiest resolved by covert military force, and the UNSC Joint Chiefs of Staff often had deteriorating situations on the Outer Rim, with insurgents and pirates readily rising up to take advantage of the War-weakened UNSC. In 2554, the Department of Strategic Intelligence was covertly authorized by the order of Director of Naval Intelligence Margaret O. Parangosky, and would be led by Brigadier James Ackerson. 
The practicality of Strategic Intelligence was that it was extraordinarily effective. With unrestricted area of operations and jurisdiction, STRATINTEL was in a prime position to resolve any number of "dirty" conflicts. Strategic Intelligence recieved essentially unlimited funding from unmarked budgets in the Office of Naval Intelligence, and had the authority to draw on any number of UNSC Special Operations Command assets to accomplish its phantasmal objectives. Furthermore, Strategic Intelligence was fully expendable — it was a black ops department headed by James Ackerson, an infamous officer well-despised by many flag officers but recognized as a necessary evil. Strategic Intelligence was fully disposable and was deniable — it was deliberately organized by ONI to appear as if it was a rogue operation being solely headed with Ackerson, with no visible associations to ONI nor UNSCSOCOM, and if it was discovered, Director Parangosky was fully prepared to disown Strategic Intelligence and to condemn Ackerson for treacherous black operations never authorized by ONI. Strategic Intelligence was also a convenient hole to bury Ackerson in, removing his bismirching presence from "mainstream" ONI and also keeping the ruthless and ambitious commander occupied.
==Operational History==
Strategic Intelligence, because of its deniability and efficiency, would soon become the Joint Chiefs of Staff's and ONI's favorite scapel for dealing with sophisticated situations, and in 2554, would be involved with the anomalous events at Carinae-312 as well as the hunt for the Steadfast Faith and the Forerunner vagrant. One of Strategic Intelligence's field teams was GREY APEX, which would lead STRATINTEL's interest in Carinae-312, and SPARTAN-III Black Team would be attached to STRATINTEL for the Steadfast Faith conflict.
The Department of Strategic Intelligence's operations under Brigadier Ackerson would remain highly-classified because of the nature of their interests.
STRATINTEL would still be active by 2590 and would participate in Alice in Wonderland.
==Organization==
Strategic Intelligence, in its original iteration in 2554 under the tenure of Brigadier General James Ackerson, would be a one-star independent command fully outfitted in traditional military format, replete with staff officers that directed operations, intelligence, and other functions within the command.
At least forty years later, Ackerson's considerable progress and success with Strategic Intelligence would catapult the prestigious to a three-star command, one led by a Vice Admiral (O-9). During Beyond Veil's Azure, Vice Admiral Cooke, the former Director of Special Intelligence (Section Three), would lead Strategic Intelligence. During the Galactic Era, he would be succeeded by Vice Admiral Carter as the Director of Strategic Intelligence. 
==Known Personnel==
===Galactic Era (2604)===
*Vice Admiral Carter (O-9), Director of Strategic Intelligence (Galactic Era, 2604)
*Captain Karen Elizabeth Wakes (O-6), Commanding Officer of the UNSC Meridian Dream
===Beyond Veil's Azure (2594)===
*Vice Admiral Cooke (O-9), Director of Strategic Intelligence (Beyond Veil's Azure, 2594)
===Post Human-Covenant War (2554)===
*Brigadier General James Ackerson (O-7), Director of Strategic Intelligence (2554— )
*Commodore Elaine Lujayne (O-7), Chief of Operations 
*Colonel Aramcham (O-6), Chief of Intelligence 
*Major Vivian (O-4), Deputy Chief of Operations
*Lieutenant Commander Passmore (O-4), GREY APEX team leader 
*Lieutenant Denning (O-3), GREY APEX technologist and security chief 
*Special Agent Leary, GREY APEX archeologist 
*Special Agent Vaught, GREY APEX sociologist
Category:UNSC