ADVENT: Organizations

The Alien Emissarial and General Integration Service (AEGIS) Division

"We are in a galaxy inhabited by aliens. Like it or not, we need to be able to manage the ones who aren't interested in invading our world. At the moment."

- Kyong Suk-Chul, Minister of ADVENT Public Relations

Division Proposal 0109

Latest Revision: 1/14/2017

Program Type: Diplomatic; Alien Outreach and Management

Authors: Kamar Dennis, Chief Ambassador of the AEGIS Division; Elizabeth Falka, Director of ADVENT Intelligence; Amalda Stein, Chief of Peacekeeper Operations; Keith Watkins, Chief Overseer of the Oversight Division; the Commander of XCOM; Aegis, Ethereal Representative; Saudia Vyandar, Chancellor of ADVENT; Runi'sirasis'vitianis, Vitakara Representative

INITIAL PROPOSAL: The question of if we are alone in the universe has been sufficiently answered, and our species now finds itself in a conflict with multiple alien species allied through a tenuous Collective. While ADVENT continues to fight against this unprovoked and unjustified invasion of our world, it is important to examine the larger ramifications of this event.

It is extremely likely that there are other aliens beyond the Ethereal Collective, and they will not be as aggressive as the Ethereals have been towards our species. Furthermore, the defections of certain high-profile aliens in protest of the invasion have shown that even members of the offending species are capable of reflection and reconciliation.

The Alien Emissarial and General Integration Service (AEGIS) is established to handle all diplomatic relations with extraterrestrial organizations and powers, friendly and antagonistic. The AEGIS Division will convey the will and words of ADVENT to others across this galaxy, and negotiate, discuss, and interact with other diplomatic bodies to come to a mutually beneficial agreement.

The AEGIS Division will also be responsible for communications during wartime between ADVENT and a hostile alien species, and will facilitate surrenders and ceasefires with amenable parties if necessary. The AEGIS Division will also handle all prisoners of war and alien defectors, and will provide protection to, and work with, aliens who wish to assist ADVENT.

In addition to diplomatic services, the AEGIS Division will also facilitate integration into ADVENT and Human society in general for aliens interested in emigration. While ADVENT is and will remain the face of Humanity, ADVENT will not turn away aliens interested in assisting Humanity as it expands across the stars and will do what is necessary to help establish themselves within ADVENT, through the AEGIS Division.

This will be expanded upon in the following branches of the AEGIS Division.

THE ALIEN DIPLOMATIC SERVICE BRANCH: The mission of the Alien Diplomatic Service (ADS) Branch of the AEGIS Division is the facilitation of communications between ADVENT and alien organizations. All diplomatic options relating to alien governments and parties will be handled exclusively by the ADS, and this cannot be overridden by the ADVENT Diplomatic Service, which manages interspecies diplomacy.

The ADS will manage agreements between ADVENT and alien parties, and work to come to arrangements which serve all sides in the interest of continued peace. At any time ADS will call upon the necessary experts to consult for any potential questions which arise during negotiation between ADVENT and alien parties.

The ADS will work to clearly convey the will of ADVENT, and present it in an unbiased and factual manner, with the understanding that such actions will be reciprocated. ADVENT and the ADS have no interest in engaging in duplicitous talks with alien parties, and will take appropriate action against those who wish to threaten, mislead, or manipulate ADS and AEGIS personnel.

The ADS will also engage in all negotiations for prisoners of war captured by ADVENT, Humans captured by alien parties, negotiations for ceasefires, surrenders, or other peace agreements. The ADS and the AEGIS Division are completely willing to help all parties come to an agreement which leads to a stable future for both alien and ADVENT parties with no risk of such unfortunate incidents arising in the future.

The ADS will also employ alien ADVENT citizens interested in work for the ADS, for both advisory and diplomatic positions. The ADS will also make efforts to ensure that there are no cultural misunderstandings or incidents, with the assumption that the same will be provided in return. ADVENT is ultimately not interested in the conquest and assimilation of alien species, and the ADS will be the arm by which the galaxy sees this.

Embassies for both ADVENT and other alien governments are maintained, run, and protected by the ADS, and for foreign embassies, ADVENT will allow them to conduct business as they see fit, but as ADVENT does not recognize diplomatic immunity, are fully expected to comply with all ADVENT laws and regulations. For embassies on alien soil, ADVENT will similarly comply with alien laws and regulations.

THE ALIEN IMMIGRATION SERVICE BRANCH: The Alien Immigration Service (AIS) is the branch of AEGIS responsible for processing, approving, and transferring citizenship or asylum requests from aliens. The AIS is committed to ensuring that applications are reviewed and responded to in a reasonable amount of time.

Applications for citizenship will be created by, and maintained, by the AIS and they are authorized to ask whatever questions are necessary to give a complete picture of the applicant being reviewed. While ADVENT is open to alien citizens, there are certain standards and profiles which need to be met to facilitate a smooth integration into ADVENT society. This is a Human government, and one must willingly integrate themselves to be approved for citizenship.

Questions which will be on the application will include the following:

- Name

- Age

- Species

- Race (If applicable)

- Reason for application

- Skills/Education

- Relatives employed by an alien government or organization

- Prior criminal history

- Prior military service

Should the questions to the initial application be completed in a complete and satisfactory manner, the applicant will be moved to the next stage, where AIS personnel will conduct a short in-person interview to build a further detailed psychological profile of the applicant in question to determine if they would integrate well with Human society. The AIS has the right to employ psionic personnel when conducting interviews, and the applicant beforehand will consent to this. If they do not consent, they will be escorted off the premises and extradited to their place of origin.

If the applicant is approved by the interviewer, there will be a brief period of internal review, and the applicant will be given a final piece of documentation, which will simply state that the applicant renounces the government and species from which they come from, and from this point forward will be a citizen of ADVENT. Upon the signing of this document, the AIS will ensure that all documentation is in order, and will transfer the applicant to the Alien Integration Service to prepare and establish them for life in ADVENT.

THE ALIEN INTEGRATION SERVICE BRANCH: The Alien Integration Service (IS to avoid confusion with the AIS) is the branch of AEGIS which is devoted to assisting newly approved alien ADVENT citizens prepare for life within ADVENT. Each new citizen will be assigned an IS Handler who will help answer any questions the new citizen may have, as well as initially establish them in a place of residence. If possible, same-species IS personnel will be assigned to make new citizens feel more at ease.

New citizens, who are not immediately taking positions within ADVENT, will be transferred to specific cities approved and watched by the AEGIS Division to ensure that the first months of life within ADVENT are not disruptive or unreasonably xenophobic. Here the new citizen will be able to interact with human citizens, businesses, and government officials and form a more comprehensive understanding of ADVENT and Human society.

Throughout this transitionary period the IS handler will still be available to answer questions or concerns had, and after a period of three months the citizen will be free to move anywhere in ADVENT with almost all the rights and privileges of an ADVENT citizen (Running for specific governmental positions is not permitted for alien citizens, and other high-ranking Peacekeeper and Military positions are not open to alien citizens).

After a period of one year, the citizen will not have access to their IS handler for integration matters, and the process will be formally marked as complete and a successful integration. Alien citizens are encouraged to keep in contact with their IS handlers if they wish, and if there are any additional questions after a successful integration, the Integration Service will be happy to answer them.

THE ALIEN EDUCATION AND MATERIAL DISTRIBUTION BRANCH: The Alien Education and Material Distribution (AEMD) branch of the AEGIS Division is to gather all notable information on alien languages, histories, psychology, and culture, then compile them into easily understandable and comprehensive material for Humans within ADVENT. They will primarily work to educate ADVENT through schools, public service announcements, and social media usage on aliens they may eventually be interacting with as well as working with other ADVENT and alien parties to further spread their message.

AEMD will also be responsible for monitoring and countering anti-alien propaganda, xenophobia, and misinformation regarding alien species or cultures. The AEMD will not comment on military or political action of alien governments, as that will fall under the purview of Public Relations, but will continue to work to ensure that the wider individuals of the species are not necessarily painted as something they are not through the actions of the alien government in power.

When applicable, the AEMD will also employ and retain aliens to more accurately represent themselves, all of whom will be cleared and approved by AEGIS, ADVENT Intelligence, and the Oversight Division. While AEMD will remain apolitical as far as gathering information on aliens, there will be no removal or censoring of events or persons which paint the species in a negative light.

THE AEGIS INTERNAL MANAGEMENT AND COMMUNICATIONS BRANCH: The AEGIS Internal Management and Communications (IMC) branch of ADVENT is responsible for ensuring that all branches are coordinating when necessary with each other, and that the AEGIS Division itself is also in constant communication with all divisions of ADVENT to accurately and efficiently carry out what is best for ADVENT. Hiring and application processing is also handled by this branch.

Each branch will have a team of IMC coordinators, and each major division, section, branch, and agency of ADVENT will also have IMC coordinators. Highly placed individuals (Such as the Chancellor of ADVENT or Chief of Peacekeeper Operations) will also have an IMC handler to fully account for any major decisions made which may affect alien immigration and interspecies diplomacy.

IMC coordinators will communicate between each other, and the coordinators of a specific area will then convey the necessary information to the ADVENT personnel who need it. The IMC is an extremely crucial element of the AEGIS Division, one which affects the efficiency and accuracy of the entire Division itself.

RECRUITMENT AND TRAINING: Recruitment will be a mixture of proactive and passive actions. Applications for employment will be available online and in AEGIS embassies and Alien Immigration Centers, and physical applications are also available on demand. ADVENT Citizens are encouraged to apply if they feel their skills would suit the Division, and ADVENT will advertise and promote the AEGIS Division regularly on their social media platforms and select television advertisements.

The AEGIS Division will also make a concerted effort to find outstanding individuals to recruit through monitoring of online communities, high school and college graduates, and alien records acquired. Individuals with high oral and written skills, debate and moderation experience, or high analytic skills are ideally suited for the AEGIS Division, and potential candidates will be approached by IMC representatives about possible employment.

Depending on the position, the newly employed member of the AEGIS Division will receive training as befits their position, in a period which will be determined by their trainer, which is normally left up to discretion.

SECURITY AND DEFENSE: All security for ADVENT embassies within ADVENT territory will be provided by the Peacekeepers of the city the embassy resides in. The Peacekeepers are charged with the protection of the AEGIS embassy and personnel within from external threats or disturbances. They do not answer to any AEGIS personnel, but to their respective Captain, who will also coordinate with the embassy in question.

Security for any alien embassies is similarly provided, though protection will be provided by the ADVENT Army, and will be decided in an agreement with the alien body in question, which may include shared guard with alien protectors. Due to ADVENT regulations, constant monitoring is required for all foreign representatives. It must be noted that ADVENT personnel must acquire permission from either the Oversight Division or ADVENT Peacekeepers before taking action against foreign representatives.

Security for AEGIS Embassies on alien soil will consist of personnel from ADVENT Special Forces Divisions, the ADVENT Army, and ADVENT Intelligence. All ADVENT personnel must comply with alien laws and regulations, and may be required to work with alien law enforcement or military personnel. ADVENT Intelligence personnel will regularly perform sweeps of the embassy to remove, alter, or subvert any monitoring software or equipment unless agreed upon by ADVENT and the alien party in question.

All diplomats performing domestic negotiations will be provided with protection in the form of ADVENT Intelligence Agents and ADVENT Army soldiers, of a number agreed upon by the diplomat. Visibility or lack thereof will also be determined, but the diplomat will be protected at all times. Diplomats performing foreign negotiations will be provided with protection in the form of ADVENT Intelligence Agents, as well as personnel from the Lancer Corps and other Special Forces Divisions, of a number agreed upon by the diplomat, AEGIS Division, and ADVENT Intelligence.

All alien diplomats in ADVENT territory will also receive protection in the form of soldiers or Peacekeepers, at a number agreed upon beforehand, or none at all should they choose. If an alien diplomat is accompanied by a personal guard, ADVENT will also be required to have at least two ADVENT soldiers accompany the diplomat where they go.

AUTHORITY AND LIMITATIONS: The AEGIS Division has full control over all negotiations between alien bodies, powers, and organizations and ADVENT. This cannot be overridden by any ADVENT party except in the case of the Oversight Division countermanding a directive, a joint action by the Executive Branch together with the Congress of Nations, or a joint resolution between the Executive Branch, ADVENT Intelligence, and ADVENT Military on a specific action.

The AEGIS Division also has full control over alien immigration and integration, as well as the authority to request resources from any organization, division, or branch within ADVENT. The AEGIS Division does not have any authority over any Peacekeeper or Military personnel, and must comply with any commands issued by the Peacekeepers or Oversight Division.

The AEGIS Division has no influence or authority over any operations ADVENT Intelligence may conduct, and must turn over all information regarding alien citizens or notable alien figures upon acquisition, including any information on alien diplomats and additional compliments. The AEGIS Division is not authorized to investigate anything relating to the security or monitoring of alien embassies, nor open inquiries into any operations taking place on domestic or foreign soil.

The AEGIS Division has partial authority over the usage of alien prisoners of war, and any negotiations which take place must be done with the approval of the ADVENT Military and ADVENT Intelligence.

CONCLUSION: As humanity enters a new era, it must be fully prepared to embrace and stand up to the realities of the galaxy. ADVENT will learn from the mistakes of other species, and seek to be better than those who have come before them and work to represent what our species is capable of and who we really are to the galaxy.

ADVENT will welcome those who wish to join us, or simply seek peace or an alliance. We are committed to ensuring a future free of unnecessary conflict between species, and are the first line of contact for those who wish to meet us. Our mission is to represent ADVENT to the wider galaxy, and this will be done to the best of our ability.

The first public acknowledgement of an agreement between ADVENT and the previously acquired Vitakara defectors from the Ethereal Collective took place earlier today, in the headquarters of the new Alien Emissarial and General Integration Services Division, which is more commonly referred to as the AEGIS Division, which while not confirmed, is almost certain to be inspired by the Ethereal Aegis, who defected at some point to XCOM.

This agreement appears to give a glimpse of how ADVENT will be handling aliens moving forward, at least for aliens whose motives are either peace or non-aggression. Further information provided on the AEGIS Division shows that they will also be responsible for integrating aliens into ADVENT, confirming that aliens will have a path to citizenship should they wish to pursue it.

When asked if opening ADVENT to aliens would risk infiltration or subversion of human power or culture, Chancellor Vyandar gave the following answer: "The AEGIS Division is committed to ensuring that only those aliens actually interested in complete and successful integration will be allowed. There is a strict vetting and background process, complete with interviews and temporary handlers. Aliens will also not be able to hold prominent positions within ADVENT. There is no fear of a concerted effort by an alien body to undermine our species. ADVENT is and will remain the central power of Humanity, but we will not limit ourselves unnecessarily out of fear of the alien."

Public Relations Minister Kyong also had this to say: "I would wish to say to those who are fearing a sudden influx of aliens that there is nothing to be concerned about. At this point it is to lay the groundwork for the future, when ADVENT is no longer at war, and provide the option to aliens should they wish to follow it. Integration is something that will be handled carefully, and ADVENT citizens should not expect a major disruption or influx of aliens for a long time."

ADVENT has faced some criticism for unveiling this mere weeks after the Seoul Massacre which saw thousands of civilians and dozens of ADVENT personnel murdered or abducted. However, the Chancellor was adamant that this was previously planned, and pushing it back out of a fear of public backlash was succumbing to an outrage mentality over a more objective perspective. ADVENT Intelligence Director Elizabeth Falka also had a statement to make:

"Regardless of what the Collective denies, the attack on Seoul was despicable and dealt with accordingly. With that said, we have to keep in mind that this may have had more of a goal in mind than mindless terror. It is in the Collective's best interest that blanket xenophobia spreads as it disincentivizes further defections from the Collective, which we take as confirmation that the recent defections of Vitakara soldiers of the Collective are something they are legitimately worried about. An act to discredit all aliens in the eyes of Humans in a devious attempt to manipulate our species, but we will not succumb to it. Collective propaganda comes in all forms, and I encourage all citizens to take several moments to consider if their reactions ultimately benefit our species, or the Ethereal Collective."

The actual agreement signed by Chief Ambassador Kamar Dennis of the AEGIS Division, and Representative Runi'sirasis'vitianis, a Vitakarian defector who was appointed to represent the remainder of the defectors, simply outlines that the defectors will be housed and protected within ADVENT territory until further notice, a joint condemnation of the Ethereal Collective, and additional agreements designed to leverage the knowledge and skills of the defectors for ADVENT operations.

Chief Ambassador Dennis hinted that the AEGIS Division will be working with the defectors further, though did not disclose details at this point. Representative Sirasis was similarly tight-lipped about the future of agreements with ADVENT, but did express thanks and appreciation for ADVENT in her own brief statement:

"It is not an easy thing to realize that you are fighting on the wrong side of a war; it is difficult to describe the feeling of seeing the carefully constructed reality around you come crumbling down when the truth is revealed. But that is where I, and many others, found ourselves the day the Elder Aegis revealed himself, and similarly revealed the full deception of the Ethereal Collective.

Unfortunately, it was only the first of many revelations we learned as we were interviewed and debriefed by ADVENT. Our species lives in a society which is a shining illusion that masks the ultimate control the Ethereals wield over our species. The Aui'Vitakar are controlled by the firm hand of the Zararch, and any dissent within our homeworld and colonies is crushed before it can see the light of day.

Our species, despite what some have claimed, is not inherently warlike. The reality within Collective space is that many do not even know the full details of this war, if they know it at all. They do not know why the Ethereals ordered the invasion of your world, but assume it is justified because we have trusted the Elders were our allies for decades. I can only speculate, but I assume that any who pressed for more details have been dealt with by the Zararch to keep the Vitakara in a perpetual state of ignorance.

I would like to express my own thanks for ADVENT for treating us well, and working with us further to take action against the deceptive Ethereal Collective. I hope that this is the beginning of a mutually prosperous relationship between our species, and would also state for any members of the Collective who watch this, that there is another way. You know this invasion is wrong, but you do not need to continue to carry it out. Follow our example, and you will be protected and welcomed."

We reached out to known Ethereal Collective bases for comment and did not receive a response.

- Article: ADVENT and Alien Defectors sign joint statement establishing working relationship and condemning Ethereal Collective operations – by Xin Suong

To the Battlemaster, Quisilia, and Sana'Ligna

It appears that ADVENT is going to be more difficult that we expect in regards to the traitors who fled to them when Aegis first appeared on the battlefield. While that was bad enough, there was some good news, namely that there were a few Zararch plants which took the opportunity when it presented itself, and none of the defectors have any crippling information, or at least nothing more than what Aegis has already provided.

This good news was severely blunted by the fact that ADVENT now has entire psionic divisions, and I do not think that we can rely on any informants within ADVENT since they would not risk taking in defectors without actually checking them first. We should consider anything received from any informants within ADVENT as compromised until proven otherwise.

We also expected ADVENT to interrogate and hold the defectors indefinitely, until either they were sent to whatever experimentation labs ADVENT has (We have confirmation they exist – ADVENT is not hiding them) or used in theoretical prisoner exchanges. As ADVENT has shown itself to be an extremely practical organization, at best we assumed they would be pumped for information and killed.

This does not appear to be the case.

Instead ADVENT has taken the surprising step of unveiling the "Alien Emissarial and General Integration Service" Division.

Yes, this spells AEGIS.

We heard several rumors that ADVENT was developing a division to handle alien defectors in diplomacy, though did not know anything more substantial beyond that it was moving extremely fast and ADVENT was recruiting a high number of diplomats and linguists for unknown reasons. As it turns out, many of them are likely employed within the AEGIS Division now.

It is perhaps not surprising that ADVENT has created a branch specifically to deal with alien diplomacy. While they could have handled it through the ADVENT Diplomatic Division, they appear to want to only keep that for intraspecies matters. From the information released, ADVENT is actually planning for legitimate negotiations between themselves and theoretical alien bodies.

It certainly speaks to their confidence that they have gone to the effort of establishing this, and interestingly there are few references to the Ethereal Collective, aside from a slight jab of "Being better than other similar institutions". It appears that the AEGIS Division will handle all diplomatic relations between aliens and ADVENT, which, if they were not engaged in a war with us, would make the division a significantly influential one.

What is extremely interesting is that ADVENT is actually allowing aliens to join itself. The "General Integration Service" part of the acronym is not for show. There are entire branches dedicated to immigration and integration into ADVENT, and in multiple places it states that they will employ aliens when possible for a variety of functions.

Granted, the regulations regarding alien immigration are fairly strict, and I can safely say that ADVENT isn't going to be allowing just anyone into it, so sending any infiltrators is most likely not going to work at this stage, especially since the only ones this would apply to are traitors who have nowhere else to go. Yet the fact that this exists at all is slightly baffling, and does not match up with what I have seen of Human psychology.

Why is ADVENT so open to aliens within their territory?

This is merely taking into account that Humans historically have a documented history of shunning or sabotaging anything which does not fit into their preconceived notions of what the world should be. Skin color was enough to cause major divides and wars within Human cultures and nations, but now they are fine with completely different species?

How?

It goes beyond a notable psychological oddity when you consider that ADVENT is actively countering and suppressing direct xenophobia on social media, media statements, and pretty much everywhere they can. Note that this is strictly anti-alien sentiment, not necessarily anti-Collective. Still, the fact that they are going out of their way to do this is extremely odd, and I cannot come to a reasonable explanation for this sudden psychological shift.

I find it extremely difficult to believe that every single high-ranking member of ADVENT feels this way, especially when you taking into account that they are in a war against aliens. There are possible ulterior motives, such as that they want to specifically appeal to other possible defectors, or they will use AEGIS as a vessel to create alien agents, but even still that would not necessarily warrant this amount of fanfare and figures such as the Chancellor of ADVENT, Director of ADVENT Intelligence, Minister of Public Relations, Chief of Peacekeeper Operations, and pretty much every other major figure of ADVENT coming forward in support and recognition of the AEGIS Division.

I feel there is something missing here. This is the action of a species that is not in a war, who is rationally planning for encountering alien life in the future, and who has naturally evolved to be more united. This is not the action of a species that has a history of prejudice based on exterior or ideological factors, and who is at war with multiple alien species.

It does not add up. I would almost suspect that Aegis is affecting them somehow, if I didn't know that ADVENT has their own psions, and XCOM likely wouldn't allow that.

This is not mentioning the current batch of traitors, who have quite clearly been compromised by ADVENT, likely through manipulation of both psionic and verbal techniques. I suspect ADVENT has twisted every institution on Vitakar into some major conspiracy to keep the Vitakara complacent, without once considering the measures are in place to achieve stability, reduce criminal or terrorist activity, and neglect the significant amount of scientific and societal progress which has taken place under the Ethereal Collective.

These traitors would likely sympathize with the Nulorian if asked now. Sickening. The problem is that while we can keep their lies away from the Vitakara away from Earth, there are a number of Vitakara soldiers deployed to the planet and in system, which we will not be able to fully rotate out without having questions being asked.

What is slightly more concerning about all of this is that this level of professionalism and weaponization of alien traitors will definitely appeal to certain Vitakara, and possibly Andromedon Unions. We need to be careful with how this is distributed and handled, because while the Vitakara can be isolated, the Andromedons are much more persistent.

However, the question of why the Humans have suddenly decided to embrace aliens, regardless of stated reasons, is one which warrants some kind of investigation. It is too strange to dismiss.

- Zar'Chon'ravarian'vitiary

Addendum: Sana'Ligna – Could this attitude towards aliens have possibly arisen as a consequence of the handling of their species from the beginning, and they wish not to repeat what they view are mistakes with species they might encounter in the future? Or that they merely possess some foresight and empathy for those not of their own species?

Not everything is a conspiracy, Zar'Chon, remember that.