Bug Hunts

by Mark Latham

  2116

  First manned flights beyond the solar system achieved. Mission Gagarin sends an international team to Alpha Centauri, while Mission Aldrin does the same for Tau Ceti. The trips are one-way.

  2119

  The mega-corporation Ark Industries completes the first generation ship, and sends it to Alpha Centauri, overshadowing Stellar Dynamic’s achievements. The project sends 100 souls into space, with enough equipment to be fully self-sustaining, and to make a ground-based colony on the surface of Centauri B.

  2124

  Professor Hans Falken, president of Ark Industries, is awarded a seat on the United Nations Council – the first corporate figure to be handed full governmental powers.

  2136

  First light-squeezed transmission received from the Alpha Centauri system, proving that the research party made it alive and well.

  2169

  Even as the first generation ship colony begins to build structures on Centauri B, and with another generation ship en route to Tau Ceti, Stellar Dynamic unveils its hypersleep technology, making the idea of generation ships obsolete. Highly trained individuals are now able to travel in suspended animation for a maximum of 30-year stretches during long voyages.

  Only encountered once, on the lush jungle-world of Lenticulus V, these massive creatures known as ‘super-spiders’ are the largest bug strain ever encountered.

  2210

  Ark Industries initiates a hostile takeover of Stellar Dynamic in a bid to accelerate its manufacture of faster-than-light starships. The new mega-corp, STAR Industries, owns almost a tenth of Earth’s wealth, and uses resources mined from deep-space colonies to build ships and space stations off-world.

  2214

  Simple-celled alien organisms are discovered on over a dozen planets and moons, giving hope that there may be intelligent life out there in the galaxy. STAR Industries begins to work with the newly formed United Nations Authority to plot exploratory missions to the outer arms of the Milky Way.

  2227

  The Lunar Incursion. Whilst excavating a network of subterranean caves beneath Triton’s surface, the semi-permanent research colony uncovers a nest of crustaceous aliens. Though mostly small and easily subdued, the oldest and largest beasts kill several miners before the security forces can reach them. Evidence of the “Crab-beasts of Triton” is finally uncovered by Earth’s media.

  2234

  Humanity reaches a milestone of 100 thriving deep-space colonies, covering 24 systems. The human population in the galaxy is at an all-time high. The United Nations Authority becomes the Pan-System Authority to recognize the growing democratic rights of off-world colonies.

  2239

  A scientific expedition is launched on Draper’s World in the HD 40307 system. After weeks of working on the surface, the scientists encounter an aggressive alien life form, and retreat to the nearest space station, the Kepler facility. There, the first “bugs” are identified, labeled simply the Draper’s World Xeno-Parasite.

  2241

  STAR Industries wins the bid to privatize interstellar defense. Over the next five years, contracts with two other military hardware mega-corporations are drawn up, and the formalized STAR Pan-System Marine Corps is born.

  2245

  Bacteria discovered on Jupiter’s volcanic moon, Io, infect the scientists on board the moon’s orbital research station. All 39 crew are wiped out by parasites, which use the scientists’ bodies as hosts. STAR marines are dispatched to wipe out the threat, and identify the bugs as the Draper’s World strain. Unable to save the station, they eventually destroy it with railgun fire from their carrier. How the Xeno-Parasites reached Io remains a mystery – or a closely guarded secret.

  2246

  A fringe exploratory fleet near RSGC2 (aka Hell’s Reach) in the Centaurus galactic arm discovers life signs on two ice-bound planetoids. Investigation reveals a highly aggressive race, driven by an almost psychic intelligence. Nicknamed the “Araknyds,” when these bugs display the ability to leave their worlds and pursue the humans through space, the research facilities are abandoned.

  2248

  A STAR marine platoon engages Xeno-Parasites on the ice world Perdition. By sacrificing the surviving colonists, the marines are able to engage the bugs on an open battlefield, scoring a complete victory over the insidious Xeno-Parasites.

  2253

  STAR marines successfully stamp out the threat posed by aggressive arthropods on the “super-Earth” Tuomi in the HD 10180 system. The creatures are later subjugated by the use of fringe-science neural inhibitors, and shipped to colonies across the galaxy as hardy draft animals, being able to survive in virtually any atmosphere.

  2268

  Centauran Araknyds are found in the Scutum Reaches, and later on the moon Yanto, in the Norma-36 system. Theories are postulated that the Araknyds, having made an enemy of humans, are moving through the galaxy purposefully, drawing nearer to the solar system with each passing day. Such theories are laughed off.

  2270

  The first mass land war is fought between humans and bugs. A new bug species, controlled by a hive mind nexus, is discovered in the Klaatu Nebula. As this is seen as the gateway to a mineral-rich system, and a prime location for a hyperlane jump-gate, STAR Industries sends two regiments of marines to protect human interests in the region.

  2271

  The population of the agricultural colony on Kepler-62e reaches 10,000. After the discovery of Xeno-Parasites on the neighboring giant planet 62f, a permanent orbital defense station is built around the colonial world, with a standing garrison of one marine company, a deep space naval launch platform, and associated hardware.

  2283

  A huge meteor shower hits Earth. Although defense platforms break up most of the gigantic rocks before they enter orbit, several pound the planet, releasing an Araknyd threat onto Terran soil. By the time the Authority’s territorial military put down the threat, over 120 million citizens have been killed.

  2288 (the present)

  Training of STAR marines is accelerated as the threat to the core worlds of human colonization grows. A strong marine fleet is sent to explore the fringes of the Centaurus Arm, to locate the homeworld of the Araknyds in preparation for a full-scale assault.

  STAR INDUSTRIES AND THE PAN-SYSTEM MARINE CORPS

  You can have your Groundhog Khakis,

  And your SolNav Blues,

  But here’s a different fighting man,

  I’ll introduce to you.

  His uniform is unlike

  Any you’ve ever seen,

  The Bugs think he’s the Devil born,

  His title is ‘Marine’.

  – STAR Marine Cadence

  Mankind’s primary interstellar defense force, the STAR marines are also the first military force to be fully privatized, owned, and equipped by the galactic mega-corporation, STAR Industries. The relationship between the Pan-System Authority and STAR Command is not always harmonious. Ultimately, much of the funding for the Marine Corps comes from the Authority’s contract with STAR, but on several occasions STAR have hesitated – or even refused – to deploy the marines when doing so would prove counter to their corporate interests. If it weren’t for STAR’s CEO occupying his traditional seat on the ruling council, the sanctions for this disobedience could have been severe. In truth, although STAR need full government backing to operate as they do, they have reached the point where their corporate wealth outstrips the GDP of 50 per cent of the core worlds combined – and with that amount of power of their disposal, they become increasingly difficult to control.

  In the eyes of the general public, the STAR marines can do no wrong. STAR’s 24-7 Bug Hunts holovision channel broadcasts across 90 worlds, and no HV show is more popular than the fly-on-the-wall Arcturian Wars. Heavily edited (and, some suggest, even fabricated), the show follows the exploits of pretty STAR marine poster-girl Captain Ana Carter and her legendary Zero Platoon, as they stomp bugs in warzones across the galaxy. Br
anding and promotion is all-important to STAR – Ana Carter action figures are one of the highest-selling products in the galaxy, and more men and women sign up to the Marine Corps after each Arcturian Wars broadcast than at any other time. Such is the way of the galaxy that the STAR marines are not just mankind’s best hope for defense against the alien hordes, but also valuable commodities to be bought and sold.

  For STAR Industries, the Araknyd invasion of Earth couldn’t have come at a better time. Several high-profile disagreements between STAR and the Authority had threatened to derail renegotiation of the defense contract. However, the wave of Core World patriotism and anti-bug hysteria sweeping the galaxy in the wake of the invasion has pushed STAR’s popularity ratings through the roof once more, and the Authority has reluctantly agreed to increase funding in order to expand the Marine Corps, and end the bug threat once and for all.

  Remit & Jurisdiction

  You cannot exaggerate about the STAR Marines. They are convinced to the point of arrogance that they are the most ferocious fighters in the galaxy – and even after the discovery of giant, predatory razor-toothed bugs, they’re probably right!

  – Sir Anthony Falken III, Vice President STAR Industries, 2280

  The galaxy is a big place. To date, over 210 planets have been colonized, stretching right across the galactic plane, with countless mining outposts, research bases, hyperspace docks, and space stations spread further still. The location of these systems appears at first to be sporadic – yet they are dictated primarily by their suitability for hyperlane travel, and secondly by their wealth in resources. Those mature systems that have developed to an almost Earth-like level are often referred to as the “core worlds,” while those further afield or less well developed are the “fringe colonies.” At the epicenter of human expansion are, of course, the Sol system and planet Earth, both the administrative center of the Pan-System Authority and the spiritual home of all humans – even those who have never set foot on “Terran” soil.

  Protecting all of this vast territory from potential threats is no easy feat, which is why the STAR Pan-System Marine Corps is organized into such widespread, free-roaming autonomous companies. Though they answer directly to STAR Command – STAR Industries’ military control center – the marines have full control over day-to-day tactical decisions and deployments. STAR Command itself is based on Earth’s moon, along with the Lunar Division HQ. The Lunar Regiments are widely regarded as the best of the best, formed one of the largest marine divisions in existence. Though their marines are recruited almost exclusively from the Sol system colonies, SMEUs from the Lunar Division often find themselves dispatched all across the galaxy, making their marines the most well-traveled troopers in the corps.

  It is rare for marines to be called upon for domestic actions – this job usually falls to the Terran Army for ground wars against uprisings and territorial disputes, and SolNav for outer space actions and pirate activity – but when elite forces are required on Earth, it is the Lunar Regiments that answer the call. They were the first to the field against the Araknyd incursion, and suffered the brunt of marine casualties during that campaign.

  General Ibrahim Yeats, Lunar Base Divisional Commander, 2267-71.

  Organization & Standard Operating Procedures

  When Captain Ana Carter earned her medal for uncommon valor, I was asked if women have any place in this dirty war we’re fighting. Let me tell you this. It doesn’t make a jot of difference if a marine is man or woman. They undergo punishing training regimes in a zero-G facility. They kill bugs and follow orders. They inherit the traditions of the marines. They are marines.

  – Colonel Abraham T. Stokeley, 5th Arcturian Regiment, STAR Pan-System

  Marine Corps

  STAR Pan-System Marine Corps divisions are usually raised from a singular system, planet, or moon, depending on the military heritage and training facilities available. Most divisions maintain their own divisional HQ – a large military space station or lunar base, for example – which answers directly to STAR Command.

  STAR Marine divisions are broken down into a number of regiments, which themselves are divided into autonomous expeditionary units (SMEUs), or companies, each trained to react and adapt to any given combat situation. There can be anywhere between one and ten such companies within a regiment, depending on resources. Members of a SMEU train together, live together, and fight together for their entire careers, creating a close-knit organization. Each company is assigned a sector or range of sub-sectors to patrol, being active and space-borne for the majority of their five-year tour, before returning to a STAR facility for refits, debriefing, and retraining. As a result, unless killed in action or forced to retire, the average STAR Marine will spend more time aboard their Demeter-class cruiser than they will on solid ground. The Demeters are more than just military transports of course – they are mobile barracks, each fitted with training and recreational facilities, large armories, and medical bays. Most are assigned one or more science officers, so that new discoveries made while patrolling the fringe of human territory can be examined, and findings communicated directly to STAR Command.

  At full strength, each STAR marine expeditionary unit comprises 72 fighting men and women, plus command, science, medical, and support staff, such as engineering, fleet administration and so on. The SMEU is normally commanded by a colonel, major, or lieutenant-major, who rarely takes the field (although fully trained to do so), but instead operates from within the Demeter as a strategic commander. The remaining members of the SMEU are broken down into three autonomous platoons, each comprising 24 marines and assigned its own medium-range Seraphim dropship. Operationally, a platoon contains four squads – two eight-man fireteams, a four-man field HQ led by a corporal or captain, and a four-man specialist team. The platoon is often called upon to act in isolation, perhaps combating a threat on one world while the other platoons deal with problems elsewhere in a sector – in this function the Seraphim dropships take on the role of mobile HQ, and are able to provide resources and supplies for a platoon for up to a month without resupply.

  Major Xander of the 9th Tau Ceti Regiment inspects the aftermath of a battle against Araknyds during the Yanto Incursion.

  Fireteams

  The backbone of the STAR Marine Corps is its fireteams, which make up the majority of the fighting units at the corps’ disposal. Each fireteam comprises eight riflemen, including a sergeant. One of these marines is designated a “fire support trooper,” and is usually equipped with a specialist weapon, selected specifically for the tactical operation at hand – a combi-carbine, heavy auto-carbine, grenade launcher, flamethrower, or man-portable railgun. One rifleman is always assigned to back up the specialist, acting as spotter, loader, and weapon technician, and taking over the role if the fire support trooper should become incapacitated. The fire support trooper himself always carries a sidearm as backup – usually a frag pistol, “bugstopper,” or combat shotgun depending on expertise and aptitude.

  The standard armament of the rifleman is the SI-160 assault carbine. These weapons fire enervated caseless ammunition in short controlled bursts, capable of penetrating the toughened hides of most bug strains.

  Every member of a fireteam is a highly trained individual, excelling in bug-hunting tactics, and is required to read up on new developments and research whenever there is sufficient downtime. Even without access to the proper chain of command, it is expected that an individual rifleman be able to take responsibility for his own survival, while employing sufficient battle tactics to take the fight to the enemy. The level of trust placed in STAR marines sets them aside from the “grunts” of the Terran Army, SolNav, and the United System Defense (USD) Coastguard, earning them respect and envy in equal measure.

  Specialists

  In addition to the fireteams, each platoon has a standing force of four specialists, drawn from the SMEU’s elite. These marines are sometimes pressed into service as riflemen, having been through the same training and combat
maneuvers as the rest of their platoon. However, such deployment is often considered an almost criminal waste of their skills, as these specialists usually undergo several years of supplemental training to fulfill one of several niche battlefield roles.

  The most common deployment of a specialist team is as a heavy weapons squad. Whereas one such weapon is usually present in every fireteam, specialists excel at bringing four to bear at once, concentrating their firepower on critical targets, and digging into fortified positions as sappers. Once a heavy weapons squad have become entrenched, they are capable of holding the line with an efficiency that puts most regular fireteams to shame – no mean feat in the elite Marine Corps.

  Specialist teams are also trained in the use of the Phalanx combat exo-suit. These powered suits incorporate state-of-the-art armor bonded to a powered exo-skeleton, using technology developed from cybernetic prosthetics and automated assembly line robotics. Each suit effectively transforms a soldier into a one-man army, increasing his strength, speed, and carrying capacity fivefold, and allowing him to wield heavy weaponry with little to no encumbrance. Against larger bug species, the augmented physicality of an exo-suit trooper has often meant the difference between life and death, and the presence of an exo-suit team on the battlefield often engenders great confidence in the other combatants. There are, however, several downsides to the use of exo-suits. Firstly, their numbers are in very short supply, with less than one fully equipped per squad in a SMEU. Secondly, the amount of power required by these suits is astronomical, and a fully charged suit only allows three hours’ continuous use, meaning that they are only feasible for rapid strike missions. Finally, as a relatively new innovation, it is as yet unclear what toll prolonged exo-suit use takes on the pilots. As each suit is controlled by means of extensive psi-implants, and hardwired directly into the pilot’s neural cortex, it is not unknown for battle-damage to a suit’s drive mechanisms to result in trauma to the pilot, just as if he had been wounded himself.