StarCraft: Speed of Darkness

Starcraft #3: Speed of Darkness is the third StarCraft novel, written by author Tracy Hickman. The action revolves around a small group of Terran Marines on Mar Sara during StarCraft Episode I. They must battle the Zerg and come to terms with the Sons of Korhal ... and even their masters, the Confederacy of Man.

Back of Book Description
Far in the future, 60,000 light-years from Earth, a loose confederacy of Terran exiles is locked in battle with the enigmatic Protoss and the ruthless Zerg Swarm, as each species struggles to ensure its own survival among the stars -- war that will herald the beginning of mankind's greatest chapter or foretell its violent, bloody end.

All Ardo Menikov ever dreamed of was to live in peace on the verdant colony world of Bountiful. But when the vicious Zerg Swarm attacked the colony and annihilated his loved ones, Ardo was forced to wake from his dream and accept the brutal realities of a war-torn galaxy. Now a confederate marine, charged with defending the worlds of the Terran confederacy, Ardo must come to terms with the painful memories of his past -- and the unsettling truths that may dominate his future.

Plot Summary
The novel's protagonist, Ardo Melnikov, a new recruit in the Confederacy's Marine Corps, is devastated over his memories of the destruction of his homeworld, Bountiful, and the loss of his childhood sweetheart Melani. As part of a platoon under Lieutenant L. Z. Breanne and Platoon Sergeant Jon Littlefield, Private Melnikov is assigned to the Terran border colony of Mar Sara. The platoon, consisting of Marines, Firebats and Vulture hover cycles, is sent on a "reconnaisance-in-force" into a seemingly abandoned backwater town, where they encounter the Zerg. After an intense firefight, they recover a mysterious "box" and an unconscious woman. The remnants of the platoon retreat towards their base, but before they reach it, a tactical nuke drops behind them, obliterating the town. When they arrive at base, it too is found deserted save for a lone SCV operator.

The woman from the town, named Merdith, awakens in the command center and Melnikov (still traumatized over his past) briefly mistakes her for Melani. She reveals to Ardo that she has psionic powers, and tries to help him come to terms with his loss. In so doing, Ardo finds that his memories may be fake, a fabrication of the neural resocialization process of the Confederacy. It appears that he was, in reality, abducted and conscripted by Confederate Marines.

Soon, the platoon, trapped in their base, realize that the Confederate forces are abandoning Mar Sara and that civilians trying to flee will shortly be under attack by the Zerg. Merdith reveals that she is, in fact, is a member of the Sons of Korhal and was sent to plant the box on the planet. It is a device known as a Psi Emitter, designed to lure the Zerg across interstellar distances. The platoon was sent to find the emitter, secure it, and then die in the tactical nuclear strike.

An effort to evacuate the platoon from the base ends disastrously: a flight of Mutalisks notices the base and attacks, and Sergeant Littlefield is killed defending the Command Center. Lieutenant Breanne decides to reactivate the Psi Emitter in order to distract the Zerg from the civilians attempting to leave Mar Sara in transports provided by the Sons of Korhal. The platoon then sets about fortifying the base with mines and automated defenses in preparation for the impending attack.

After a vast and destructive battle, the platoon is eventually reduced to Melnikov, Breanne, Merdith, Cutter (a Firebat), Jans (the SCV operator), and Bernelli (another Marine). Confined to one last bunker, they fight to the death, and the civilians are able to escape due to their thankless act of heroism.

Characters in StarCraft: Speed of Darkness

 * PFC Ardo Melnikov, protagonist of the story and Marine recruit
 * Lieutenant L. Z. Breanne, platoon leader
 * Sergeant Jon Littlefield, veteran Marine, formerly a Captain and now a platoon sergeant
 * Sergeant Marcus "Tinker" Jans, technician and SCV operator, brother of Tegis Marz
 * Merdith Jernic, untrained civilian telepath and member of the Sons of Korhal
 * "Captain" Tegis Marz, pilot of the Dropship Valkyrie Vixen and brother of Marcus Jans
 * PFC Fetu "Cutter" Koura-Abi, towering psychopathic Firebat of South Polynesian descent
 * Bernelli, a Marine in the platoon
 * Mellish, a Marine in the platoon, responsible for the fortification of the base
 * Sejak, the youngest Marine in the group, practically a kid
 * Wabowski, a Firebat who loses his life in the firefight against the Zerg
 * William Peaches, Vulture driver
 * Amy Windom, Vulture driver
 * Xiang, a Marine in the platoon

Discrepancies

 * It is never explained how the Sons of Korhal planted a Psi Emitter on Mar Sara; in the game of StarCraft (as well as in the novel Liberty's Crusade) it is held that they did not find the Confederate schematics until the dying hours of the planet.
 * At one point, a Marine remarks to the Sergeant that it was "Captain" Littlefield last time they served together, but the apparent demotion is never explained.
 * In a firefight in the deserted town, Vulture cycles are noted as flying overhead, though the game manual holds they can only hover just off the ground.
 * It is never conclusively proven whether Ardo's memories are real or manufactured, but they are most likely fake as the Zerg arrived first on Chau Sara, and then moved on to Mar Sara immediately thereafter. With the speed of both the Zerg infestations and the Protoss bombardments of infested worlds, it is unlikely that the Zerg could have infested Bountiful prior to Melnikov's deployment. It is even debatable whether the planet Bountiful truly existed.

Excerpt
Starcraft #3: Speed of Darkness (Starcraft). Simon & Schuster. Accessed 2007-11-24.