Bug (animal)

Bugs, also known as Gut-Roaches, are mutated parasites that appear in Plague.

Attributes
Bugs are born small, but grow to the size of SUVs or Shetland Ponies. They have reflective body armor, but are vulnerable under the chin and inside the mouth. Their legs can be broken, but this does not appear to hinder the bug. They have sticky, barbed tongues to pull in prey, and large pincers that are capable of cutting down trees. Their eye color varies on what batch the bug is from: ruby red, blue, and jade green were all noted. Astrid believes they are some kind of wasp, but resemble a beetle.

Creation
The bugs were first discovered by Hunter. Flying snakes dropped a strange liquid on Hunter's shoulder, where a small lump began to form. The skin later broke, revealing the pincers of the young parasite. They were made to serve the Darkness, replacing what was the coyotes' role earlier in the books. The larvae grow inside the host and chew their way out, sending out a numbing chemical to the host in the process. Others can be infected by being bitten by a bug, like Roscoe. Despite Hunter's desperate attempts in cooking the larvae by using his powers, the larvae survives, indicating that the bugs are able to survive heat up to a certain point.

Destruction
They are virtually impossible to kill, their weak spot being the underside of their body and their internal organs. They are fast, nimble, and have long black tongues in which they can reel in their prey. However, they lack the consciousness which the humans and mutants possess.

Sam, Computer Jack, and Brianna were the only ones who figured out how to destroy the bugs. Sam was able to dive inside a bug's mouth and use his powers to fry it from the inside. However, his powers did not work on the hard, reflective outer shell. Jack was able to use superhuman strength to crush the bugs underneath boulders. Brianna, working with Caine, opened a cut in the vulnerable chin area and shot multiple bullets through the cut and into the bug. Other moofs such as Orc were unable to destroy the bugs.

However, only Little Pete was able to destroy them completely. When his older sister Astrid threw him to the bugs, he used his incredible powers to make all bugs vanish. However, he also disappeared in the process.

Known Victims

 * Hunter Lefkowitz
 * Roscoe
 * Jamal (although he was eaten, not infested)
 * The second Pack Leader
 * Dekka (saved by Sam)
 * Dorian
 * Zoey
 * Thirty-three unknown others