Galactic Union Special Operations Division

The **Galactic Union Special Operations Division**, more commonly referred to as **Special Operations** (Abbreviated as **SPECOPS**), is a division of the Galactic Union Military responsible for conducting special operations. These operations vary from espionage to research. The division is a hybrid of intelligence, special warfare and research organisations. Despite its relatively low size in comparison to other branches, the Special Operations Division recieves the most funding of all the branches.

The Special Operations Division traces its origins back to the United Nations Intelligence & Special Operations Forces, a military branch of the United Earth Government. This branch in itself was created from the previously private United States of America organisation known as The Foundation.

Since its founding, the Special Operations Division has played a crucial role in the development of the Galactic Union, both militarily and domestically. Several academics have estimated that almost 67% of all modern technology and research has been discovered by individuals linked to this division. However, due to the organisation's secrecy, very little is known about its actual day-to-day operations.

## Mission

> "To infiltrate, assault, research and comprehend all enemies of the Galactic Union, foreign and domestic."
> -- Mission statement of the Special Operations Division
>
>

SPECOPS is the Special Operations branch of the Galatic Union Military with four main areas of responsibility;

* To infiltrate the lines of allies and enemies alike to prepare the Union for all scenarios.
* To assault enemy sites and extract valuable targets and hostages.
* To research and advance the knowledge of the Galactic Union.
* To gather as much intelligence as possible.

## History

A brief summary of the history of the Special Operations Division

### Predecessor organisation

Much like the previous iteration, the Special Operations Division traces its roots back to the United States of America private organisation, known as The Foundation. The Foundation was a multi-national effort to advance mankind and ensure that humanity would reach the stars before they destroy each other. To that end, members of The Foundation stole secrets from their respective countries and provided it to The Foundation's science team, which then collated them together. Eventually, thanks to the efforts of The Foundation, humanity created its first planetary colony on Mars. This landmark step in human history began a period of unification, which resulted in the nations of Earth merging into the United Nations.

### United Nations

By 2081, the nations of Earth had become one super-nation. The United Nations went from a coalition to a nation-state in its own right. Thanks to the efforts of The Foundation in bringing together human genius and eliminating mutual distrust between countries, humanity was ready to explore the stars. The United Nations Military was formed to ensure that Earth was ready to deal with any threats that might come from this exploration. Knowledge of the existance of Extra-terrestrial life was kept hidden from the general populace by The Foundation and high ranking members of the United Nations government to prevent a panic. The Foundation had access to Precursor Technology for many years, and even had a living Precursor in their ranks, Azaria.

When the United Nations Military was founded, The Foundation was absorbed into it, to ensure maximum efficiency in communication. The Foundation became the United Nations Intelligence & Special Operations Forces. Despite the rebranding, the Special Operations Forces continued much of the work they had carried out as The Foundation. The Special Operations Forces, on the surface, obeyed the orders of the United Nations Government, in reality they took very little direction from them and continued to independently study Precursor Technology, without informing anyone. They also maintained their research division, which was now composed of the most intelligent minds Earth had to offer. In order to ensure their security, The Special Operations Forces allowed their research to be accessed by the United Nations of whom they were supposedly answerable to, however, the leadership of the Special Operations Forces maintained a monopoly on what information would be shared.

### Present form

By 2128, it became clear that the new Coalition of Species was going to become a new super-state. This reality became clear when in 2136, the Coalition of Species became the Galactic Union. As such, a period of organisation began where member states integrated their militaries and other organisations into the Galactic Union structure. As such, the United Earth government integrated its impressive military into the new Galactic Union Military. Due to Earth's level of technology and military size, they made the final decisions on the military structure. As such, the United Earth military integrated the Special Operations Forces as the principle intelligence organisation. The Special Operations Forces was again rebranded, to the Galactic Union Special Operations Division.

The Special Operations Division has been responsible for the advancement of Galactic Union technology since 2137, although they keep their involvement secret by outsourcing their scientists.

Most recently, the Special Operations Division has been recognised for their achievements during the War. SPECOPS was responsible for crucial intelligence gathering and hostage taking, which scholars estimate may have shortened the war by nearly two years. However, their greatest feat was the implementation of the NX-01 program, in collaboration with the Marine Corps, the NX-01 Program was the Union's first super-soldier program. The NX-01 Program is considered the reason why the war turned from a near guaranteed loss for the Union to a widely recognised draw. Therefore, SPECOPS, despite their shady nature, is often hailed as crucial organisation by the common citizens of the Union.

## Leadership

The Special Operations Division is designed to be extremely compartmentalised in the event of hostile infilatration, as such all members operate on a clearance level from 1-10. Only the highest leadership of the Special Operations Division has total access to all available information.

* **Secretary of the Special Operations Division:** Asal Hironagh

The Secretary serves as the nominal head of the Special Operations Division, and oversees all operations within the branch. Much like the leaders of other military branches, the Secretary is appointed by their predecessor.

* **Deputy Secretary of the Special Operations Division:** Scarlett Vylechieva

The Deputy Secretary serves as the deputy head of the Special Operations Division. They are usually a seasoned agent with many years experienced. They are appointed to advise the Secretary and assist with day-to-day running. They liase with the leaders of the corps most of the time. The Deputy Secretary that is appointed by the Secretary is usually the designated *heir* to become the next Secretary.

* **Commander of the Assault Corps:** CMDR August Dawes

This role is given to an experienced and highly respected member of the Assault Corps. The Commander serves as the head of the Assault Corps and is charged with the day-to-day operation of it. They report to the Deputy Secretary and Secretary for overall orders, but, much like the other commanders, they have almost free reign to conduct operations on behalf of the Union.

* **Commader of the Infiltration Corps:** *Midnight*

This role is given to an experienced and highly respected member of the Infiltration Corps. The Commander serves as the head of the Infiltration Corps and is charged with the day-to-day operation of it. As with all members of the Infiltration Corps, they use a designated codename for everything, as they have abandoned their original identity. They report to the Deputy Secretary and Secretary for overall orders, but, much like the other commanders, they have almost free reign to conduct operations on behalf of the Union.

* **Commander of the Intelligence Corps:** CMDR Dyelaskius

This role is given to an experienced and highly respected member of the Intelligence Corps. The Commander serves as the head of the Intelligence Corps and is charged with the day-to-day operation of it. They report to the Deputy Secretary and Secretary for overall orders, but, much like the other commanders, they have almost free reign to conduct operations on behalf of the Union.

* **Administrator of the Research Corps:** Dr. Alexei Legasov

Unlike the other roles, the Administrator of the Research Corps is a purely scientific role. The Administrator serves as the head of both the Research Corps and the Anthenaeum as a whole. In this dual role, they report to the Deputy Secretary and Secretary for overall orders, but in their position as head of the Anthenaeum, they report directly to the President of the Galactic Union. As with the commanders of the other corps, they are free to set policy and directives for their corps.

## Organisation

The Research Corps is a branch of the Special Operations Division charged with the advancement of the Galactic Union through any means necessary. The Research Corps operate out of a number of installations including The Anthenaeum, and are made up of some of the greatest minds in the Galactic Union. It is said that almost 67% of modern technology and research has been made by the Research Corps in some shape or form.