Dead Space: Martyr

Dead Space: Martyr is a tie-in novel set in the Dead Space universe, written by B.K. Evenson. It is a Prequel taking place long before the rest of the series, and reveals the history of Michael Altman, the head figure of the Church of Unitology, and his discovery of the Black Marker, the first evidence of alien life.

The sotry can be divided into three sections. The first section is about Altman and several other scientists discovering the Marker in the Gulf of Mexico, and their attempts to retrieve it as people start to hallucinate and lose their minds. In the second part the military comes in, kidnaps the scientists including Altman, and threatens to kill them if they do not experiment on the Marker. In the final part, Necromorphs appear and invade the secret lab everyone is in, and Altman has to escape while dealing with the Necromorphs and the military.

Tropes Dead Space: Martyr has:

 * Badass Bookworm: For an anthropologist Michael Altman is a very capable fighter.
 * Markoff and Stevens
 * Chainsaw Good: Inverted. Altman tries to use an old chainsaw to kill a necromorph, he experiences the usual kickback effect and almost dislocates his shoulder.
 * Karma Houdini:
 * Playing Both Sides:
 * Phlebotinum Killed the Dinosaurs: Sorta.
 * Psychic Link: The novel pretty much confirms that the Marker actively and intelligently tries to contain Necromorph outbreaks, and usually do this by creating hallucinations of dead loved ones.
 * Start of Darkness: It turns out Michael wasn't nearly as "dark" a man as you'd be led to think. The Church, on the other hand...
 * Writtenbythe Winners: