Prologue/Natalie Harlow

Prologue
Natalie sat back against her seat, listening to the engines of Skyranger drone on and on. She reread the file she had been handed hours ago, still trying to wrap her head around what had happened.

A few hours ago

"Can I help you guys?" asked Natalie, putting down a laptop. "Hadron colliders don't run themselves."

"Sir my name is Lieutenant Mitchell, this is Captain Shepard, we're here on behalf of the Extraterrestrial Combat Unit." replied one of two uniformed soldiers standing in front of him.

Natalie tried to stifle a laugh, getting up to walk over to a coffee machine in the lab and poured some into a mug. "No offence Captain, but I heard XCOM closed down quite some time ago. Heck, XCOM was a thing back when I was a kid."

"Yes, well while XCOM was active during the invasion several years ago, the project is being restarted." said Shepard as she produced a file from a briefcase. "We're currently in the process of scouting the best and the brightest to become part of it."

Natalie poured milk into the mug and stirred before taking a sip. "'Best and brightest'? And you came looking for me I guess? Why? Do we have another invasion looming above our heads?"

"We're not at liberty to divulge such information. Suffice to say XCOM requires your assistance." said Mitchell bluntly

"What's going to be doctor? Feel like stepping up to the plate?" asked Shepard, putting the file down on Harlow's desk.

I guess I can't say no to a challenge. thought Natalie as she paged through it. Some of the dossier included past reports from during the invasion, technical notes and a brief, if cryptic note on an organisation called EXALT. She came across a section marked "Recruitment Evaluation" and raised an eyebrow in interest.

"Well, well, what do we have here?"

''Dr Natalie Harlow.  A highly intelligent physicist and engineer, Natalie was too young at the time to be considered for recruitment during previous invasion. It is believed a technical mindset in the field will provide a new perspective for situations as well as provide potential operatives with technical assistance.  Previous work included weapon design for private military developers however Harlow left after voicing concerns over certain projects. Currently Dr Harlow resides in Geneva, working at CERN in many of the ongoing projects. While her expertise may be better used for field support, Natalie may be considered as potential engineering staff as well. An general opinion is that a soldier with a technical mindset will be more aware of potential new assets and dangers when engaging targets. If needed she may be transferred to support staff at XCOM HQ for large engineering operations.  Psychological Evaluation: Natalie displays genuine respect for colleagues and friends, it is expected that she will step into hostile situations as a peacekeeper, especially focusing on civilians. Her scientific mindset gives him a different perspective to situations and enjoys new situations not experienced before (may be potential recruitment point). Furthermore, while not often exhibited, Harlow does occasionally demonstrate slight arrogance and condescension at personnel.  Recommendation for XCOM: Technical Specialist (query potential MEC soldier/engineer as well as Skyranger support crew). ''

"So, the good looks wasn't of interest to you?" asked Natalie jokingly.

"Sorry, it's not exactly a key point we look out for." replied Shepard, sitting on the opposite side of the craft. "Though you do have fewer scars than most people we've recruited."

Natalie smiled, running a hand under her jaw. "So what now? You hire some genius engineer and expect him to design next-gen weapons for you in a Tony Stark fashion?"

"Not necessary, XCOM has that handled. As you're aware, we are hoping that you'll accept a position in the field, ensuring that the team's tech holds up as well as advising action when encountering new technologies." said Mitchell. "We find that most soldiers are not always skilled enough to deal with unknown tech, often they load it onto a Skyranger and haul it back. However, sometimes teams need more help in order properly retrieve tech or find new sources."

Natalie nodded in agreement, as she thought the Skyranger began to slow down, dropping down to a lower altitude before final approach.

"Hypersonic and VTOL capabilities, Rolls Royce engines?" she asked.

"Actually they're an XCOM proprietary design, we design and manufacture all our equipment on-site." replied Shepard with a hint of pride.

"Huh, all that cost and complexity in self-sustained production. To ensure design secrecy? No, could hire external contractors with secrecy agreement and strict monitoring. Rapid delivery? No, little point, these things can reach supersonic speeds." Natalie clicked her fingers in realisation. "You don't trust anyone else, with anything. Fear of infiltration and being compromised, keep it all under XCOM and you can keep an eye on it all. Also keeps tech out of the wrong hands."

Shepard and Mitchell looked at each other in surprise, not entirely at the deductions made, more how Natalie had chattered away non-stop.

"Erm, yeah. Something like that." said Mitchell, a little baffled still.

Arriving at their destination, the Skyranger hovered above a deserted area of land for a moment. Then without warning a larger section of the ground retracted back, revealing a large underground hangar. The jet swiftly touched down on a pad and opened the rear hatch. The three stood up and walked off the transport, the chilled air of the underground base surrounding them.

"So." she looked around. "Nice place you got here."

"Welcome to XCOM Doctor."