NASOU

Nos Astra Special Operations Unit, or more commonly known as NASOU, is a domestic intelligence, counter-intelligence and security service agency that primarily operates in Nos Astra.

The NASOU’s primary responsibilities are to provide highly trained security and counter-terrorism services at short notice, as well as combat and investigate significant violent or white-collar crime within Nos Astra. To achieve this, they have separate specialized divisions for each high-risk scenario, including bomb defusal division, aerospace guard and rescue, forensic and research division .etc.

It was originally a minor branch of law enforcement in Illium's early development years, solely responsible for reconnaissance. But as Nos Astra grew into a trading hub for both within Asari space and species beyond, it quickly attracted smugglers and pirates. It soon became disadvantageous to deploy conventional police units and take them down by force, so the Nos Astra Police Department looked to train and employ undercover cops to provide intel and sabotage their enemies’ operations from within to prevent massive civilian casualties.

General Major T'neis, former Asari commander of Nos Astra Police, officially split the reconnaissance branch from the main police force and repurposed it into a specialised faction, coining her newly founded organisation with the name NASOU. Her main philosophy in resolving missions became a core lesson of the Agency: to never stoop to the arithmetic means of saving civilian lives - it did not matter if one civilian needed to die to save a hundred more, as adopting such views were not within their core tactics to outhink and outmaneuver their enemies to save everyone. One of her famous quotes claimed that NASOU was created for the purpose of being conquered by nothing and noone, even in small forces, which became the organisation’s motto.

Due to the discrete nature of their work, the commanding officers ensure that its members rigidly adhere to their regulations unless their actions justly protects or benefit Nos Astra’s security. Breach of their regulations, even a minor one, is punished heavily with massive deduction in pay grade. In some cases, the agents are either discharged or legally sentenced for dishonorable conduct.

Its members are predominantly of Asari species, with a smaller margin of Turian, Salarian and human operatives. Thanks to the large initial investment from Asari Republic's government and additional tax income from wealthy merchants, they were provided with the highest grade of armory and technology to carry out their mission.

The screening process of each potential recruit is meticulously done to ensure the most fit, sound of mind and person of genuine integrity is selected. Any flaw or possible criminal association are immediately rejected, unless a high-ranking law-enforcing official can personally vouch for their capabilities, but even then the candidate will be heavily scrutinised during the training process. The time period of a training process depended on which division the operatives are assigned to. Most require two to four months of training, but their most legendary division, commonly known as AID (Anti-Terrorist Intelligence Division) requires two solid years of both physical and mental training. As an intelligence trainee, the recruits are trained for the initial four months. They learn to fight in organised unison and tactic in urbanised high-risk areas, to train their physique so they are more adapted to fast-paced deployment and combat, and protect civilians in mock hostage situations.

The rest of the twenty months consists of nothing but arduous and extreme assessment trials. Most of what the assessment consisted of are strictly classified but it is well known among the Illium community that the recruits are expected to perform in full armor and gear for 19 hours a day - and only the top scoring trainees are selected to advance to the final stage of their trial.

Once a graduate officially earns the rank of Field Agent of NASOU - AID Division, they are expected to be tight-lipped about everything they saw or did in their missions. They are forbidden from disclosing their affiliation with the Agency to anyone, even after their resignation, unless their commanding Chief of Staff has authorised the disclosure.

Though AID is smaller in numbers compared to other clandestine agencies that operate on multi-planet scale, they are well-known for deploying squadrons of no more than twelve members, each specialising in a particular skill such as a medic, and still achieve a surprising 0% failure rate on their deployment. Most of their operations are strictly classified from the general public, but the few cases they did chose to disclose to the public exemplifies the surprisingly efficient results of their work in disposing high risk targets, whether it is by sabotage, assassination or by kidnap.

As a small specialised unit, NASOU platoons excel at infiltration, intel-gathering and rapid deployment in any urbanised area. They employ Guerilla tactics, special reconnaissance and hostage rescue, while remaining undetected the entire time. However, due to their small numbers, they are extremely vulnerable to direct combat and can be easily overwhelmed by sheer numbers if sighted.

## **Organisational Structure:**

NASOU has several sectors under its agency, each division dedicated to specific operations and has separate specialised agents of its own, such as Bomb-defusal squad, Cyber Crime Branch, Intelligence Branch.etc.

The general hierarchy are as follows:

* Chief of Staff
* Deputy Director
* Associate Deputy Director
* Senior Staff
* Supervisory Special Agent
* Special Agent-in-Charge (SAC)
* Senior Special Agent
* Special Agent
* Field Agent
* New Agent Trainee

## **Notable Members:**

CLASSIFIED DATA:

* ~~Avesi T'Meris~~ (Inactive)
* Hadriana "Hades" Dominus (Active)
* Myrezla DeVeria (Active)