Martian Menace

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For as long as man has gazed at the heavens, silent alien observers have looked back. Unbeknownst to humankind, Earth has proven a particularly favorite subject of study over the past several centuries for the indigenous inhabitants of our nearest planetary neighbor, Mars. Mars, long since depleted of resources and reduced to a barren desert of red dirt, cannot provide the necessary sustenance for the Martian species. Seeing the error of their ways much too late, the Martians have looked beyond their home for new resources and, conveniently, found Earth right around the cosmic corner.

The Martians possess technology and methods of space travel that humanity will not discover for generations, but they lacked the capacity for a full-scale invasion of a neighboring planet when their own environmental apocalypse fell upon them. Starvation had taken its toll on the Martian population by slowing industry and depleting their military. The relocation of their species required patience and planning.

Their plan required the vast majority of surviving Martians to enter suspended animation while scientists and engineers constructed a fleet of ships and vehicles capable of conquering the Earth. Meanwhile, scout teams observed Earth, and harvesters mined the planet for resources to fuel the military effort back on Mars. Unfortunately, time was not on their side, and human technology developed far quicker than anticipated. Decades flew by between advances in the Martian military machine, and every year, humans developed greater power.

The Martians could no longer hide after the Roswell crash in 1947. In an effort to control the progress of man and gain inside intelligence, the Martians came forward to the governments of the world's leading nations and traded technology for resources, all the while steering humanity's progress in just the right directions to ensure its eventual vulnerability. This more open relationship sent more resources back to Mars and productivity vastly accelerated. Shortly after the turn of century, the Martians removed their soldiers from stasis, said goodbye to Mars once and for all, and mobilized their fleet.

The invasion of Earth had begun.