A deceased alien as seen in NieR:Automata
A deceased alien as seen in NieR:Automata Ver1.1a
The aliens are an unnamed extraterrestrial race that conquered Earth thousands of years after the events of NieR. They battled with Emil and the androids that were left behind by humanity during the 1st Machine War, and over subsequent wars conquered the rest of the planet.
The aliens and their machine lifeform weapons are the stated reason for YoRHa's existence in the fight to reclaim Earth for humanity, though it is worth noting machines existed as early as the 1st Machine War.
Story[]
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As revealed by the Complete DOD Chronology by Accord, the aliens arrived July 4th of the year 5012, and in their initial invasion quickly annexed both North and South America, setting up foundries, or scavenging existing ones, that would be used to produce the machines, their weapons of war.[1]
By year 7645, the aliens and their machine armies had successfully conquered over 80% of Earth, despite the best efforts of the android and Emil resistance against them. However, by this time the machines had begun scheming to eradicate and abdicate their alien masters, and by the year 11000 eyewitness reports of the aliens begin to noticeably decline.
During the events of "The Flame of Prometheus", P-33, a machine originally from Earth, taught the machines made by the aliens about his experiences with humanity thanks to his friendship with Kalil and inspiring the machines to learn more about humans. Because of this, the machines began to revere P-33 as a deity they referred to as "Prometheus" and turned against their alien creators and killed them all as a result.
By year 11306 the aliens are completely exterminated and forced into extinction by the machines. From this point onward the aliens, like humanity, would posthumously be used as the figureheads of their respective faction.
During the 14th Machine War, after a cavernous hole is opened in the City Ruins, 2B and 9S discover a number of alien motherships buried underground. To their surprise, all of the aliens on board are dead. Adam reveals that the machines turned on their alien creators centuries before, because they were "infantile" and only desired to spread themselves, and had no more need for them. The machines have been operating on their own ever since.
It is later revealed that Emil was present during the invasion of Earth and created copies of himself in an attempt to fight back against the aliens, but failed.
Theories[]
- It is commonly accepted in the community that, if Adam's words are taken literally, as well as the Red Girls implications as Jackass's final report, that the aliens were made entirely extinct as a species which is backed by the implication that the machine network extends beyond the Earth. This would also explain why in response to the deaths of the aliens that went to Earth no reinforcements were sent or a shut down order for the machines were never made.
- Alternatively, it could be argued that aliens were simply locally extinct and that other aliens were tricked into believing nothing was going wrong or simply didn't care.
- Adam describes the aliens as being "infantile" and "simple" alikening them more to plants. This suggests the aliens did not possess a sophisticated level of sentience or possibly individuality compared to androids.