(Untitled)

[noble_6]

Things have gotten busier since they let Natalie back out into the field. Insurgency missions are far behind her; for the last two weeks, she's been working to disrupt a Covenant mining operation. They're making headway, but the Covenant have been settled in for a long time and they're not going to be dug out overnight

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[thefirststark]

Howard Stark is staring. Not at the woman, though she is attractive. But at the armor. It's amazing. And must be really, really advanced.

"Er, hello. What is that you're wearing?"

[noble_6]

Natalie blinks.

"This? MJOLNIR Powered Assault Armor, Mark V."

[thefirststark]

"Assault armor...it must be very advanced. What's it made from?" Appropriately for the day, Howard suddenly seems like a kid on Christmas morning, ready to unwrap a gift.

[noble_6]

"Well, it's 2551 back home," she replies.

"And the armor's mostly a titanium alloy."

[thefirststark]

He's trying not to stare. Really.

"You're 500 years ahead of me. So that must be...

"Please forgive me. I work in engineering and I would probably kill to be able to make something remotely like that for the army.

"Howard Stark."

[noble_6]

"No need to apologize.

I'm Natalie; good to meet you, Howard."

[thefirststark]

"Do you get this sort of thing here all the time? I mean, I would guess your armor is commonplace to you, right? But to me..." He orders a coffee. "We can barely make bulletproof vests and helmets,"

[noble_6]

Natalie shakes her head.

"They aren't all wearing this back home, I can tell you that. This--"

She gestures to her armor. "--is just issued to a few of us. For the most part, the rank and file Army and Marines have a much simpler kit; mostly vests and helmets with some smaller armoring on arms and legs.

Specialized units get more elaborate armor depending on their skill set. This is the latest and greatest out of R&D; there aren't many in the field."

[thefirststark]

He immediately suspects that she therefore must be among the elite. Which a woman in his time would never be.

"Am I allowed to ask what sort of duty you've pulled?"

[noble_6]

500 years can make a world of difference.

She nods. "What you need to know first is that we're at war with some alien races who've banded together in what they call the Covenant. Turns out humanity is an affront to their religion, so they're not too fond of us.

I've been hopping around on different assignments--generally ground combat, some times more covert than others--wherever the military needs an extra pair of hands. A few months ago, they had me serving as a test pilot for a new space-based fighter."

[thefirststark]

"Test pilot?" That future sounds grim, but at the same time he has to be interested in the tech. "I suppose I can call myself that, after a fashion. But not of fighter planes and never in space."

[noble_6]

"Not of planes, huh?"

She smiles. "Am I allowed to ask for more details?"

[thefirststark]

"No, just not of fighter planes. I test the small passenger planes I develop. It has the same sorts of challenges, but with a bit less risk." Although he is sure he could fly anything.