Gaiaterra: Elysea's Conflict/The Astarte

The Space Marines or Adeptus Astartes (or just Astarte) are foremost amongst the defenders of the Coalition, the greatest of the Votann warriors. They are barely Human at all, but superhuman; having been made superior in all respects to a normal man by a harsh regime of genetic modification, psycho-conditioning, and rigorous training.

Space Marines are untouched by plague or any natural disease and can suffer wounds that would kill a lesser being several times over, and live to fight again. Clad in power armor and wielding the most potent weapons known to man, the Space Marines are terrifying foes and their devotion to the Votann and the Coalition is unyielding. They are the Coalitions Angels of Death, and they know no fear.

The Astartes are physically stronger, far more resilient, and often mentally far removed from the lot of most normal Human beings. In the presence of the Astartes, most people feel a combination of awe and fear.

Potential Astartes are usually, but not always, recruited from the Coalition, Coalition allies, and surrounding areas, while some "less ethical" chapters outright abduct orphans, whether from the streets or the aftermath of a war, within Guardian/Destroyer territory, though unlike the Heralds they won't abduct children with families and will properly adopt children in orphanages, much to the staff's terror.

Recruiting methods vary from Chapter to Chapter. Some select their neophytes from feral tribes roaming the less civilized territories, while others draw upon eager volunteers who have been groomed from birth to become an Astarte. Whatever the method, all Space Marine Chapters will only accept those who successfully pass the grueling initiation trials and prove themselves worthy of becoming a Space Marine.

However, a man or woman becoming a Space Marine does not matter: once their body has been forged into that of a transhuman Astartes, they must forever stand apart from the people to whom they were once kin and who they are now sworn to protect. Once a person becomes a Space Marine, they are no longer mortal or even a man or woman; they are now Astartes, which some consider as a type of intersex as their transformation tends to make them androgynous with only their genatalia signifying their gender at birth, with most Astartes going by non-binary terms, if they didn't identify as such before, upon transformation.

There are approximately 50 Space Marine Chapters active in the Coalition at any one time.

Gene-Seed
The gene-seed of an Astartes is the foreign genetic material responsible for making an Astarte what they are. The gene-seed develops into the special organs that are then implanted into a potential Space Marine's body. These gene-seed organs are responsible for most of a Space Marine's physical enhancements over baseline Human capability.

All Gene-Seed are cultivated within labs deep beneath the Coalitions homeland guarded by a mountain of security, with any unauthorized personals caught immediately killed.

During the recruitment and enhancement process, a few aspirants may not survive the rigors of training and the later medical treatments one must undergo to become a full-fledged battle brother of the Chapter.

First and foremost, a potential Space Marine recruit must be human, as the Gene-Seed and the developing Space Marine organs are compatible only with the Human's hormonal balance and genetics. Trying to implant other races (Dwarf, Eldar, Harvin, etc) with Space Marine gene-seed would result only in a painful, agonizing death. The two following requirements also apply:


 * Space Marine aspirants must be adolescents or very young adults, as the implants must be able to coordinate with a Humans natural growth hormones during adolescence to stimulate the growth and development of the various unique physiological features of a Space Marine. In specific terms, the recruit must be about 10-16 years of age, although the process has been documented to still work in recruits as old as 20 as long as they have not yet reached their full adult growth.


 * Much like a blood transfusion or organ transplant, there must be immunogenetic compatibility between the recruit and the implants; otherwise, organ failure may result, causing the recruit to die or simply degenerate into a state of madness as their own tissues come under autoimmune attack.

These two main criteria bar all except a small percentage of Humans within the Coalition from becoming Space Marines.

If all the tests prove successful, the Space Marine recruit transforms from a neophyte into a Scout Marine or even a full initiate depending on the Chapter's individual organization.

The recruit is then taken to live at the Chapter's fortress-monastery where they is instructed in the ways of battle and taught the values and history of the Chapter. At this stage, organ implantation, psycho-conditioning, and physical training begin.

Each step in this stage has its own dangers, ensuring that only the truly worthy initiates become Space Marines. After several standard years of training, conditioning, and implantation surgeries the initiate becomes a true Astartes, undergoes their Rites of Fire in their first combat action, and becomes a true Astarte of their Chapter.

Implantation of Astartes Organs
Nineteen genetically-engineered organs grown from the Chapter's Gene-Seed are implanted in a Firstborn Space Marine neophyte's body to further bolster their combat and survival ability should they live to become a full battle-brother and initiate of the Chapter.

Many of these organs are cultured in vitro from the Gene-Seed, whilst others require that the Gene-Seed be injected into the aspirant's body and then grow into a new organ using the implantee's own physiological processes.

All Space Marine Chapters use the gene-seed organs to unleash and control the metabolic processes that transform an ordinary mortal into a Space Marine.

The gene-seed itself is encoded with all the genetic information needed to reshape ordinary Human cell clusters into the special organs Space Marines possess in those instances where they are not directly implanted after being cultured outside the body.

The gene-seed contains genetically-engineered viral machines which rebuild the Human body according to the biological template contained within it and created by one of Elysea's children. However, even from the beginning of the Astartes' existence, there was never a set way to activate these transformative functions of the gene-seed.

Each implant has a low margin of catastrophic metabolic failure and physiological rejection and so most neophytes live to become initiates of the Chapter and enter the 10th Company as Scout Marines.

The gene-seed organs must be implanted into an adolescent Human for the process to have the greatest chance of success no later than their 16th year, though it is medically possible to begin the process as late as 18 standard years of age before full growth has been reached in the early 20's.

However, a gene-seed organ implantation procedure done at this late stage in the child's growth will as likely kill them as not. In general, most Space Marine Chapters prefer to begin the process sometime between the ages of 10 and 14 years.

The full list of 19 gene-seed organs, presented in the order in which they must be implanted within a Firstborn Space Marine neophyte, is as follows:


 * 1) Secondary Heart (The Maintainer) - This is the first and least difficult implant to install. The Secondary Heart increases blood supply and pumping capacity and is capable of taking over entirely should the primary heart fail. It may also pump steroids and adrenaline into the first, primary heart to give the Astartes an extra "rush" of energy on the battlefield.
 * 2) Ossmodula (The Ironheart) - This implant strengthens and greatly accelerates the growth of the skeleton of a Space Marine by inducing their bones to absorb a ceramic-based mineral administered in every Astartes neophyte's diet, this will also slowly cause their body to become more androgynous as advance forward. Within two standard years after the surgery, the Space Marine's skeleton will be larger and exponentially stronger than a normal man's with growth having topped out at around 7-7.5 feet (2.1 to 2.3 metres) in height with an equivalent amount of skeletomuscular mass. An Astartes' rib cage will now also harden into a solid bone plate to provide greater protection from injury for the internal organs whenever it detects a force applying to the chest.
 * 3) Biscopea (The Forge of Strength) - Implanted into the chest cavity, this implant massively bolsters skeletomuscular development and muscle fiber density throughout the Astartes' body to increase physical strength by unleashing a wave of Human growth hormones. This gene-seed organ is commonly implanted at the same time as the Ossmodula since it is necessary to successfully regulate the Ossmodula's hormonal secretions. This implant is also responsible for causing an Astartes hormone to balance out, causing them to look more feminine or masculine, depending on how they looked before becoming an Astarte.
 * 4) Haemastamen (The Blood Maker) - Implanted into the main blood vessel like the aorta, femoral artery, or the vena cava, the Haemastamen alters an Astartes' blood's biochemical composition to carry oxygen and nutrients more efficiently. The actions of the Haemastamen turn a Space Marine's blood a brighter shade of red than that of normal Humans because of its greatly increased oxygen-carrying capacity. It also acts to biochemically regulate the actions of the 2nd and 3rd gene-seed implants, the Ossmodula and Biscopea.
 * 5) Larraman's Organ (The Healer) - Shaped like the Human liver but only the size of a golf ball, this gene-seed organ is placed within the chest cavity and manufactures the synthetic biological cells known as Larraman Cells. These biosynthetic cells serve the same physiological purpose for an Astartes as the normal Human body's platelets, serving to clot the blood lost from wounds, but they act faster, more efficiently, and more effectively. When a Space Marine is wounded and incurs blood loss, Larraman Cells are released by their circulatory system and attached to the body's normal leukocytes (white blood cells). At the site of the injury, they form scar tissue in a matter of seconds, effectively preventing massive blood loss and infection of the wound. The action of this organ is one of the reasons that the Space Marines are seen as nearly invincible and so difficult to kill despite the terrible wounds they sometimes endure.
 * 6) Catalepsean Node (The Unsleeping) - Implanted into the back of the cerebrum, this implant allows a Space Marine to avoid sleep, instead entering an almost comatose trance where their minds "recharge". It also allows one-half of the brain to rest while the other hemisphere remains alert, thus removing the need for the unconsciousness required by normal sleep. The longest any Space Marine has ever been on active combat duty without rest is 328 hours, achieved by a squad of the Crimson Fists Kill-team during the battle against the Horde for the city of Rynn.
 * 7) Preomnor (The Neutraliser) - The Preomnor is essentially an organic decontamination chamber that is implanted inside the chest cavity and connected to the digestive system, above the original stomach so that no actual digestion occurs in the Preomnor. It is capable of biochemically analyzing ingested materials and neutralizing most known biochemical and inorganic toxins. The Preomnor enables the Astartes to eat normally inedible substances and resist any poisons they may ingest.
 * 8) Omophagea (The Remembrancer) - Implanted into the upper spinal cord so that it becomes a component of the central nervous system, this organ is designed to absorb information and any DNA, RNA, or protein sequences related to experience or memory. This enables the Space Marine to gain information, in a survival or tactical sense, simply by eating an animal and then experiencing some of what that creature did before its death. Over time, mutations in this implant's gene-seed have given some Chapters an unnatural craving for blood or flesh.
 * 9) Multi-lung (The Imbiber) - The Multi-lung is a third lung implanted into an Astartes' pulmonary and circulatory systems in the chest cavity that is able to absorb oxygen from environments usually too poor in oxygen to allow normal Human respiratory functioning. Breathing is accomplished through a sphincter implanted into the trachea, allowing all three lungs to be used at full capacity. In toxic environments, a similar muscle closes off the normal lungs, thus oxygen is absorbed exclusively by the Multi-lung, which then filters out the poisonous or toxic elements.
 * 10) Occulobe (The Eye of Vengeance) - Essentially, the Occulobe is a gene-seed organ that enhances an Astartes' eyesight after being implanted along the optic nerve and connected to the retina, granting them exceptional vision and the ability to see normally in a low-light environment.
 * 11) Lyman's Ear (The Sentinel) - This gene-seed organ implant renders a Space Marine immune to dizziness and motion-induced nausea, and enables an Astartes to consciously filter out "white noise" or resist other sonic attacks.
 * 12) Sus-an Membrane (The Hibernator) - This implant allows a Space Marine to enter a catatonic or "suspended animation" state and is implanted within the brain near the pituitary gland as a part of the body's endocrine system. It can allow a mortally wounded Astartes to survive his injuries, and bring the metabolism to a standstill until they can receive full medical care. Only the appropriate chemical therapy or hypnotic auto-suggestion can revive a Space Marine from this state. The longest recorded period for this form of hibernation was endured by battle-brother Silas Err of the Dark Angels Chapter, who was in Sus-an hibernation for 567 years.
 * 13) Melanochrome - Linked into the endocrine system via the lymphatic system, this gene-seed organ alters the pigment cells in the skin, which allows the Astartes' skin to shield them from otherwise dangerous levels of radiation and heat. Different levels of radiation cause variations of skin color in different Chapters due to mutations in the Melanochrome organ's gene-seed. This can be related to the unusually pale skin of the Blood Angels and their Successor Chapters and the dark black skin and red eyes of the Salamanders. This also has the unintended side effect of removing any prior skin flaws, causing an in-joke among the Coalition that an Astarte can easily become a model or join a boy/girl band were it not for their generally apathetic demeanor, dedication to battle, and the various black carapace socketsdotting their body.
 * 14) Oolitic Kidney (The Purifier) - This gene-seed organ works in conjunction with the Preomnor, filtering the blood to remove toxins that have been ingested or breathed into the body. However, this detoxification process renders the Astartes unconscious once it begins, so it can be very dangerous if required during combat. Under normal circumstances, the Oolitic Kidney also acts as a regulatory organ for the Astartes physiology, maintaining the efficient action of the Space Marine's advanced circulatory system and the proper functioning of his other organs, implanted or otherwise.
 * 15) Neuroglottis (The Devourer) - This gene-seed organ implanted in the mouth allows an Astartes to biochemically assess a wide variety of things simply by taste or smell, biochemically testing various objects for toxicity and nutritional content, essentially determining if the substance is edible or poisonous. From poisons to chemicals to animals, a Space Marine can even track their quarry by taste or smell alone, much like the average canine bred for tracking.
 * 16) Mucranoid (The Weaver) - This gene-seed organ is implanted within the central nervous system and responds to specific chemical stimuli in the environment, causing the Space Marine to secrete a waxy protein substance similar to mucus through his pores that seal their skin. The gland's operations must first be activated by external chemical treatment, usually self-administered before it will activate. Space Marines are cocooned in this way before they enter suspended animation, and the process can even protect them from the harshness of the vacuum and other extremes of temperature, particularly in deeply frigid environments.
 * 17) Betcher's Gland (The Poison Bite) - Actually consisting of 2 separate glands implanted into multiple locations inside an Astartes' mouth, including the inside of the lower lip, in the salivary glands or in the hard palette, these two glands work in tandem to transform a Space Marine's saliva into a corrosive, blinding acid when consciously triggered. An Astartes trapped behind iron bars, for example, would be able to chew their way out given a few hours. These implants' more common use is to aid in the digestion of unusually difficult or impossible things to digest, such as cellulose.
 * 18) Progenoid Glands (The Gene-Seeds) - Implanted into both the neck and the chest cavity, these reproductive glands serve to collect, gestate and maintain the gene-seed from a Space Marine's body, and to safeguard it for the continuity of a Chapter. These organs hormonally respond to the presence of the other Astartes gene-seed implants in the body by creating germ cells with DNA identical to that of those implants through a process very similar to cellular mitosis. These germ cells grow and are stored in the Progenoid organs, much like sperm cells or egg cells are stored in the testes and ovaries of normal men and women. When properly cultured by the Apothecaries of a Space Marine Chapter, these germ cells can be gestated into each of the 19 gene-seed organs needed to create a new Space Marine. Thus, for most Astartes, their Progenoid Glands represent the only form of reproduction they will ever know, though the DNA passed on will be that of their primarch, not their own. The neck gland can be removed after 5 years, and the chest gland after 10 years; both are then used to create new gene-seed organs for the development of the next generation of Space Marines.
 * 19) The Black Carapace (Interface) - The last and possibly most important of all gene-seed implants, this neuroreactive, fibrous organic material is implanted directly under the skin in the chest area of the hardened and shell-like ribcage of the Astartes neophyte. Invasive fiber bundles that serve as neuron connectors then grow inward from the implant and interlink with the Space Marine's central nervous system. Points pre-cut into the Carapace before its implantation by the Apothecary are effectively neural connection points, allowing an Astartes to directly interface their central nervous system with their suit of power armor so that the suit can provide enhanced protection and combat maneuverability unavailable to an unaltered Human wearing the same armor. And, like the Ossmodula and Biscopea, the installation of the Black Carapace will slowly change an Astartes body, often giving them their androgynous loo.

Throughout the implantation process, a Space Marine neophyte must undergo multiple regimens of chemical and hypnotherapy treatments in order for the implanted organs to develop normally and function properly so that they integrate without mishap into the new Astartes' physiology.

A few neophytes have been lost during the implantation process as their bodies proved critically unable to meet the new biochemical and hormonal stress being placed upon them.

For these unlucky individuals, the only recourse is usually euthanasia or being reduced to a mindless cybernetic Servitor who can still prove to be of at least marginal use to the Chapter. The full course of implantation surgeries begins under ideal conditions between the ages of 10-14 years as outlined below:


 * Age 10-14: The Secondary Heart, Ossmodula, and Biscopea are implanted, with the Ossmodula and the Biscopea usually being implanted during the same surgical procedure.
 * Age 12-14: The Haemastamen and the Larraman's Organ are implanted. This surgery can be difficult for neophytes at the older end of this age range, who have less time to recover from the previous surgeries and the effects of the implants upon their rapidly growing adolescent bodies.
 * Age 14-17: Once the Catalepsean Node is implanted at the sixth stage of the process, the neophyte begins their mental conditioning in the device known as a Hypnomat.
 * Age 14-16: The Preomnor, Omophagea, and Multi-lung are all implanted within the neophyte simultaneously in the same surgical procedure, some time during this age range but after the Catalepsean Node has been implanted and mental training has already begun. The Occulobe, Lyman's Ear, and the Sus-an Membrane can also be implanted at any time during this age range, also usually during the same surgical procedure.
 * Age 15-16: The Melanochrome, Oolitic Kidney, and Neuroglottis are ideally implanted during this age range, all during the same surgical procedure.
 * Age 16-18: The remaining gene-seed implants, the Mucranoid, Betcher's Gland, Progenoid Glands, and the Black Carapace, are implanted in that order at any time between the ages of 16 to 18 standard years. The idea is to be able to introduce a neophyte into a Chapter's company of Scout Marines by the time their adult growth has been reached, usually around 18 years of age, though some neophytes have become Scouts as early as the age of 16 if their implantation process began at the young end of the age ranges given here.

Off-Duty
In times the Astarte aren't in combat or doing military duties they would most likely be living in the Fortress-Monastery, where a Chapter will safeguard its heritage and keep its trophies of war. It is rare for more than half of a Chapter to be in residence at any one time since most of the Chapter’s companies spend their time eigher fighting in battles/skirmishes or doing sentry duty.

Consequently, life in a fortress-monastery tends to follow ancient traditions and faithful routines of prayer and devotion that have gone long unchanged. The Codex Astartes teaches that to be a great warrior, a Space Marine must be more than their weapons and armor, more than the genetic gifts of the Votann and more than the war machines provided by his Chapter.

They must be strengthened with faith in the Coalition and shielded by indomitable courage. What time a Space Marine does not give over to training will mostly be spent in prayer; even rest is a secondary concern to the rituals of devotion.

As a result, a fortress-monastery is designed for these needs, its halls studded with alcoves and shrines and its vaults filled with combat arenas and firing ranges.

So that the Astarte might concern themselves only with honing their body and spirit, the menial tasks of the fortress-monastery are dealt with by Chapter serfs. These lay-servants are drawn either from local populations or sometimes from failed Astartes recruits, allowing them to serve despite not becoming Space Marines.

They clean the vast vaulted chambers and prepare the Astarte spartan meals. When work is too intricate or complicated for servitors, it is the Chapter Serfs who tend to the task for their superhuman masters, moving like shadows through the halls and catacombs of the monastery.

Though they have a trusted place beside the Astartes they serve, they remain largely invisible to them, just another function of the monastery which allows them to focus on the needs of their warrior life.

Though most chapters, like the Salamanders, instead encourage their companions to go out and interact with the locals in their free time, even hanging out with Aio and Dwarfen forces off-duty. The goal not being to have fun or relax, though many consider it as such, but to instead be a reminder that they were created not as weapons, but as one of the shields to defend the Coalition and its people, and to make sure that they never lose their compassion and empathy and foster camaraderie with the Humans and Dwarfs they fight alongside.

And as the chapter doesn't really have a vow of celibacy, some Astartes even fall in love, whether with another Astarte or other races and foster families, though their transformation renders them infertile. Often becoming another reminder of why they fight to protect the Coalition.

Trivia

 * Unlike 40k, the women In Gaiaterra can become Astartes but they and the men become intersex (with most identifying as non-binary), also unlike 40k who consider the space marines as masculine.