The Zerg History
- The Grand Experiment -
Driven to perfect their science of proto-genetic evolution, the
ancient, enigmatic race known as Xel'Naga traveled to the dist-
ant fringeworld of Aiur. The vast jungles of Aiur had produced
the mst advanced race that the Xel'Naga had ever seen. Believing
that thy could steer the race's evolution to the pinnacle of ph-
ysical perfection, the Xel'Naga began to conduct their proto-ge-
netic experiments. The race that the Xel'Naga would eventually
name 'Protoss' advanced rapidly and gained what their creators
termed 'a distinct purity of form'. Unfortunately, the Xel'Naga
pushed their experiment too far. The inherent essence and sentince
of the Protoss developed far too rapidly, leading to bitter strif
and division between them and their creators. The Xel'Naga deemed
that the purity of form they sought to create had been sullied
by a conflict of essence and thus decreed thet the Protoss were,
in fact, a failed creation. The Xel'Naga abandoned their children
and launched themselves into the void.
- The Birth Of The Zerg -
Traveling thousands of light years into the bourning core of the
galaxy, the Xel'Naga eventually settled upon the volatile ash-world
of Zerus. The Xel'Naga planned to continue their Grand Experiment
of evolution, only this time they dismissed their tenets of physi-
cal form and focused chiefly on the pursuit of a distinct purity
of essence. Residing in their massive ships high above the fires
of Zerus, the Xel'Naga began once again to challenge the wiles
of fate. The Xel'Naga were more successful with their second venture
than they could have imagined. They labored to advance the evolution
of the most insignificant life form on Zerus, a race of miniature
in- sectoids known as Zerg. Through Xel'Naga proto-genetic manipulat-
ions, the Zerg survived the torrential firestorms on their world
and thrived. Although extreamly small, worm-like, and possesing
no abilityto manipulate their surroundings, the Zerg adapted to
survive. They developed the ability to borrow into the flesh of
the less vulnerable species indigenos to Zerus. Feeding off the
nutrients con- tained within the spinal fluids of their hosts,
the Zerg learned to parasitically merge with their host creatures.
Once they became capable of controling the metabolic and anatomical
processes of their hosts, the Zerg used their new bodies to manipulate
their sur- roundings. As the Zerg incorporated more and more host
creatures into their fo- ld, they began to assimilate their various
genetic strains and pro- cesses. Zerg chemistry began to mutate
and adapt according tp the vo- lume of new genetic material being
processed. However, as deverse as the range of host creatures
became, there was always the undeviating drive to consume only
the most evolutionarily advanced species en- countered. The Zerg
were innately selective as to which species they consumed, ensuring
that at every stage of their development theyw ere at the top
of the proverbial food chain. Any race that the Zerg came across
that was deeemed unworthy of assimilation was eradicated to further
purify the strains. The Xel'Naga soon made an alarming discovery.
The original races assi- milled by the Zerg were hardly recognizible
after only a few generati- ons of their inception. Somehow the
Zerg had developed the ability to supercharge and steer the latent
evolutionary processes within their host creatures. The host creatures
fell pray to the effect of gradual physical mutations that caused
all of the various strains to grow armor piercing spines, razor-sharp
limbs, and ultra dense carapaces. Over a surprisingly short amount
of time, the strains grew to resemble a terr- ifyingly ravenous
and unified race.
- Overmind -
The Xel'Naga, reamembering all to well that their failure with
the Pro- toss was a result of pushing the sentience of the Fledgling
species too quickly, decided to follow a different path with the
burgeoning Zerg. Attempting to waylay the potential hazards of
differing egos, the Xel'Naga sructured the collective sentince
of the Zerg into unified amalgamated 'Overmind'. The Overmind
coalesced into a semi-sentient being that re- presented the primary
drives and instincts of all of the Zerg strains. As time passed,
the Overmind developed the rudiments of personality and advanced
intellect. Although the Overmind dircted the actions of every
creature within the swarm, it did so through the use of secondary
agents. The Overmind created a new strain of Zerg that could facilitate
the communication of its whims. These Cerebrates were massive
versions of the original Zerg in- sectoids and were engineered
to process and caryy out the variuos object- ives of the Overmind.
Each Cerebrate had unique objective, such as 'de- fense the Hive',
'scout for potential strains', 'produce more warriors', or 'eradicate
all life forms'. The Cerebrates were then empowered to bu- ild
their own Hive clusters and carry out their intended agendas.
Over ti- me they developed personalities that corresponded to
their primary drives. Howerver, the Cerebrates were still genetically
incapable of ignoring or overriding the commands of the Overmind.
The Zerg chain of command lengthended as new races were incorporated
into the swarm. Cerebrates began to use secondary agents to communicate
their orders as well. For the defense and productivity of the
imme- diate Hive, the Cerebrates turned to Queens to further extend
their control over the swarms. The Queens oversaw Drone activity
through- out the resource lines of the Hive and kept a vigilant
watch over the budding spore colonies of the collective. In times
of battle, Cere- brates called upon the Overlords to directly
relay their commands to the myriad warriors of the swarm. Overlords
not only transported Zerg warriors into the fray, but also directed
their attacks against their enemies. Just as the celebrates followes
the Overmind, the Queens and Overlords were incapible of disobeying
the commands from their Cerebrates. This rigid system of command
kept the swarms at peak, savage efficiency. As the swarm continued
to grow and strenghten, the Overmind turned its toughts towards
its own future. It realized that within a few short centuries
its race had assimilated all of the indigenous life upon Zeus.
It knew that to further evolve the swarm, the Zerg would need
to leave Zerus. The Overmind began to reach out within its senses,
looking for something - anything - wich would provide them with
transport from this world. That opportunity soon arived. A race
of gargantuan, space-faring life forms passed trough the Zerus
system, and the Overmind called to them. Drawn to the barren world
by this beacon, they were quickly assimilated by the swarm. The
inclusion of super-dense hides and the ability to exist in a vacuum
bolstered the genetic pool of the swarm. Soon the Zerg warriors
were conditioned to survive the harshness of space. This pivotal
moment in the development of the Zerg was not lost to the Xel'Naga.
The Zerg, despite having an extreme physical handicap, had succeeded
in not only surviving, but in retaining the purity of their terrible
overriding essence. The Xel'Naga knew thet they had achieved their
goal.
-
The Fall Of The Xel'Naga -
The
pride in their achievments proved to be fatal downfall of the
Xel'Naga. The Overmind, while slowly expanding itself into the
void of space, became aware of the mighty Xel'Naga world-ships
hovering ominously above the skies of Zerus. The Xel'Naga, having
kept a constant watch on the Overmind, were horrofied to find
that it had actually severved their psychic link, effectively
hiding itself from their view. With its need to consume driving
its minions into a lustful frenzy, the Overmind launhed the now
space-faring Zerg swarms at the unsuspecting Xel'Naga. The ancient
race did what they could to stem the tide of the ever-advancing
Zerg onslaught, but in the end their efforts were in vain. Wave
after wave of zerg swarms hammered the reinforced hulls of the
Xel'Naga's ships with no signs of abatement. Within only a few
houers the Zerg overan the defences of their creator and laid
waste to the Xel'Naga fleet. As the greater whole of the Xel'Naga
race was consumed by the raging, genetic whirlwind of the Zerg,
the Overmind gained the knowlege and insights of its masters.
The Overmind processed thousends of sentient beings into itself,
causing it to grow far more powerful than it had ever imagined.
It learned the secrets of the sacred Khaydarin Crystals, and began
to incorporate the energies of these Crystals into its own. Through
the intimate knowledge of evolution and proto-genetic physiology
gained from the Xel'Naga, the Overmind was able to increase the
level of sentience in many of the higher Zerg strains, while still
keeping them fully under its control. Through dissecting the memories
of the Xel'Naga, the Overmind was made aware of the myriad races
that had at one time or another been influenced by the ancient
race. The Xel'Naga had kept a detailed genetic history of each
race, giving the Overmind a clear understanding of their respective
strenghts and weaknesses. Most importanrly, the Overmind learned
of an exceedingly powerful race that lived near the galaxy's fringle
known only as the Protoss. The Overmind knew then that the Protoss
and the Zerg would eventually be caught in an inevitable, apocalyptic
conflict.
- The Determinant -
The Zerg left the lifeless, burning world of Zerus and laid waste
to every planet they found along their path towards the Protoss
Homeworld. As they progresswed slowly through the trackless dark
between the stars, the Zerg assimilated only the strongest of
the races that they came across. The swarm continued to build
steadily, ever-increasing in size and power. As they progressed,
the Overmind sent out numerous deep-space probes that scouted
ahead of the swarm, searching for new worlds to plunder. Despite
innumerable victories, the Overmind was greatly disturbed. The
Overmind was aware that the Protoss had become a highly psionic
race, able to blend and warp the very fabric of reality to their
whims. It sought a way to counter the awesome might of the Protoss,
but found no answers among the genetic strains it devoured. On
the verge despair, the Overmind made an amaizing discovery. One
of its deep-space probes had relayed the location and vital statistic
of a race that occupied a series of nondescript worlds, right
under the shadow of the Protoss. The new race, called Humanity,
was mere generations away from developing into a formidable psionic
power. But the Overmind also knew that Humanity was still in its
infant stages, hardly capable pf defending itself against the
revenous Zerg. Although a shortlived and seemingly frail species,
the Overmind knew that Humanity would be the final determinant
in its victory over the Protoss. If it could assimilate the psionic
potential of Humanity, the Overmind would have the ability to
combat Protoss on its own terms. Thus, the Zerg swarms slowly
made their way towards the burgeoning worlds of Humanity. The
journey lasted for sixty years, but eventually the massive, extended
Zerg swarm reached the outskirts of the Terran Sector of Koprulu.
Sending in a scouting Brood, the Overmind soon discovered that
the Humans dwelt on over a dozen different worlds within the Sector.
Seeding the atmosphere of the planet called Chau Sara with rudimentary
Hive-sopres, the Overmind began to unfold its master plan to enslave
Humanity. The Hive-spores greadually drifted down to the surface
of Chau Sara and saturated the ground with their denduding, alien
toxins. Although the Human colonists had no idea that the Zerg
had subtly infested the topsoil of their world, Zerg minions began
to descend to the planet's surface and construct their bizarre
structures and Hive clusters. Once the infestation of the colony
was well underway, the Overmind sent its voracious children to
the other nearby worlds. Insidious and elusive in their tasks,
the agents of the Overmind soon infested the colonial worlds of
Chau Sara, Mar Sara, Brontes, and Dylar IV, unnoticed by the denizens
of those colonies. Yet, from out of the cold void of space, a
mighty fleet of Protoss warships emerged to combat the Zerg invasionary
forces. The Overmind, anxious to learn what it could about the
enigmatic Protoss, decided to let them hamper the initial infestation
process. Holding its ravenous warriors at bay, the Overmind watched
as the Protoss were aware that the Hive Spores had already despoiled
the planet and seeking to prevent further infestation, incinerated
the planet. Such decisive action pleased the Overmind, who could
only marvel at how the Protoss wrought absolute devastation with
such grace and power. Knowing that the coming conflict would be
the greatest challange of its existence, the Overmind pulled its
forces back to observe how the Protoss, and Humanity, would react
next.
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