Infestor

The infestor was one of the more insidious strains of the Zerg Swarm, a burrowing support creature evolved from the borbu matriarch and in use by the Zerg by 2503. Where most Zerg strains overwhelm an enemy through force, the infestor worked through subversion, seizing control of hostile minds, regurgitating infested soldiers into the enemy's own ranks, and immobilizing foes beneath a corrosive growth.

Origin and physiology#

The infestor evolved from the borbu matriarch and was in use by the Zerg by 2503. It is carried on sturdy legs that secrete a corrosive substance, softening the soil so the creature can burrow in the blink of an eye. Unlike most Zerg strains, the infestor can move while burrowed, and at astonishing speed. Writhing sensory tentacles extend from its jaw and serve as a secondary but more powerful set of eyes and ears, by means of thousands of microscopic growths that function as biological transceivers. Dominion research into the strain has been slow and largely fruitless.

Hardened plates of assimilated mold and fungus protect the infestor from enemy fire and would-be predators. The strains of the Leviathan Brood show these defensive structures in more pronounced form. The primal Zerg also make use of infestors, though those creatures are frequently preyed upon by the larger members of their own packs and have evolved thickened plating along the back to protect themselves.

The neural parasite#

The infestor's most dangerous feature is the neural parasite, a multi-mouthed symbiotic creature that lives within the infestor and, when spat, attaches to an enemy and controls its mind for a short period. It is inserted through a parasitic stinger, a flexible appendage capable of boring through both natural and organic plating, which drives the parasite directly into the target's central nervous system, where it embeds near the top of the spine. The amorphous parasite cannot survive long within a foreign body, but whatever the controlled host carries out under the Swarm's influence leaves lasting scars, and the host can still communicate through the parasite's native language to its former allies. Recognizing the potential of this weapon, the Queen of Blades carried out incubation of new strains capable of surviving longer outside a host.

Infested terrans and other weapons#

Infestors are used to support hydralisks and roaches on the battlefield, and they plant virophages. They are known to ingest infested marines and carry them to a combat zone, storing them in thick flesh cavities until the infestor regurgitates them to face their former compatriots or anything else that threatens the Swarm. These infested marines can erupt from the ground when the infestor is burrowed. The infestor is also capable of harboring larvae and spewing them at enemies.

Upon developing the fungal growth mutation, the infestor's hardened carapace becomes a weapon as well as armor. The creature can turn the inner layer of that carapace into a viscous fluid that breaks down matter in seconds and immobilizes whatever it contacts. Sprayed over an area, the fluid both damages and roots any enemy it touches, and the growth reveals cloaked and burrowed foes alike.

Variant strains#

The infestor strain has produced specialist forms within the Swarm, among them the Choker. Infestors enslaved by the Cerberus Program were implanted with a titanium infrastructure to improve their survivability, and the primal and Leviathan Brood lineages each carry their own adaptations of the base creature.