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Intro
It is the year 1999. Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs) have started appearing with disturbing regularity in the night skies. reports of violent human abductions and horrific experimentation has struck terror into the hearts of millions. Mass public hysteria has only served to expose Earth's impotence against a vastly superior technology.
Many countries have attempted to deal independently with the aliens. In August 1998, Japan established an anti-alien combat force, the Kiryu-Kai. Equipped with Japanese made fighter aircraft, the Kiryu-Kai certainly looked like a powerful force, however after 5 months of expensive operations they had yet to intercept their first UFO. The lesson was clear: this was a worldwide problem which could not be dealt with by individual countries.
On December 11th 1998, representatives from the world's most economically powerful countries gathered secretly in Geneva. After much debate, the decision was made to establish a covert, independent body to combat, investigate and defeat the alien threat. This organisation would be equipped with the world's finest pilots, soldiers, scientists and engineers, working together as one multi-national force.
This organisation was named the Extraterrestrial Combat unit or X-COM for short.