Engineer

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"What the hell are you?" This article is about a subject that lacks an official name, and is known only by a nickname, a callsign, or an alias.

"A superior species, no doubt."

―David, regarding the Engineers (from Prometheus)

The Engineers, also known as Pilots^[2] (after the individual discovered on LV-426), Space Jockeys,^[3] Ossians^[1] or Mala'kak,^[4] were an ancient extraterrestrial species. They possessed some of the most advanced technology in the entire galaxy, with special emphasis placed on their skills in genetic engineering. Credited with the creation of humankind, Engineers were believed to have been beneficent creators of sorts who sailed the stars terraforming primordial celestial bodies and seeding them with the foundations of biological life. As such, they were revered as gods by the species they created.

Name

The Engineers were labeled with a multitude of different names; deciphered hieroglyphic tablets found in Tanaka 5 referred to them as 'Ossians',^[1] whereas the decoded beacon of the Derelict Ship from LV-426 made reference to a species known as 'Mala'kak'.^[1]

The name "Engineer" was given by Elizabeth Shaw and Charlie Holloway due to the lifeform being responsible for "engineering" the human race. Though their scientific name was originally 'Mundus gubernavi' ('Universal Pilot'), this name was actually incongruous, as there is no 'pilot' genus to draw from.^[1] After Elizabeth Shaw's notes were recovered some time following her disappearance, a more appropriate name was given following the revelation that Engineers were the predecessors of the human race - 'Homo Genitor' (creator of man).^[1]

Characteristics

"Okay. From the suits and the statues, we can tell the Engineers were biped and humanoid. Hands with fingers. A head with sensory organs. A lot like Earth life, very human. But three meters tall. Giants."

―Timothy Hoenikker regarding the Engineers (from Aliens: Fireteam Elite)

The Engineers are extremely pale humanoids. They are readily distinguished from humans by their hairlessness, high nose bridge, raised brow ridges, and extreme height. The veins underneath their skin are visible, and their eyes are black.

Though some fossilized evidence points to Engineers being as tall as 4.5 meters, the largely agreed consensus is that they typically averaged 2.7 meters.^[1] Their musculature appears very similar to that of humans, with visible musculature matching up closely with the general build of humans. They also seem to be extremely strong and resilient given to the fact that the Last Engineer killed Peter Weyland's escorts by sending them flying across the room from simple punches and was impervious to gunshot damage at close range. However, this Engineer was outfitted with a biomechanical pressure suit that probably also increased its strength and durability by working as a biotechnological power suit. In Predator: Fire and Stone, a physical fight between an experienced Predator and an Engineer shows the latter to be far stronger with it dominating the fight, shrugging off a plasma bolt and heavily wounding the Predator, causing it to rely on its stealth tactics, equipment, and the aid of a human to defeat the Engineer.^[5]

The Engineers from Planet 4 as seen in Alien: Covenant, however, appeared more primitive and slightly different in appearance from those the crew of the USCSS Prometheus encountered on LV-223, having eyes more closely resembling those of humans, far more variance in body shape and appear to vary in height as well, compared to the universally tall and muscular Engineers seen in Prometheus, although the clothes they wore bear a striking resemblance to those worn by the sacrificial Engineer from Prometheus. Based on a cut scene from Prometheus, as well as their voices as heard during David's genocide on Planet 4, their voices appear similarly human-like, although seemingly lower in pitch.

Engineers have a lifespan of around 150 years.^[6]

Culture

"It's all speculation. But there's absolutely no possibility of contact or negotiation with the Engineers. They are hostile on sight. Either they hate all life-forms, or they have a particular problem with their creations. They kill us. They kill bugs. Bugs kill us. We fight back against everything. Which is why having Ahab in our corner helps. We are at the bottom of the food chain."
"Why... Why would something so evidently advanced act with such hostility against its own creations?"
"Who knows, Mr. Melville? Maybe we're accidents. Or disappointments."

―Melville and Foster (from Prometheus: Life and Death)

Though not much is known about the Engineers, it is shown that they have displayed advanced forms of culture that exist within their society, such as language, visual arts, music, and clothing. Music, specifically, appears to be a strong aspect of their culture, with a special flute-like instrument serving as a tool to operate different technological instruments.^[7] It has been hypothesized that Engineers see music as not only sound, but colors, shapes and words as well.^[7]

Technology

"Look at the interior of the helmet! Looks like... Blood vessels. Glands? That isn't mechanical. It's biotechnology. I wonder if all Engineer equipment is like this?"

―Dr. Hoenikker, regarding the Engineer technology (from Aliens: Fireteam Elite).

The Engineers are a technologically-advanced race. They are extremely advanced in genetic engineering and have built their own spacecraft, such as the Vast black Ship and the Juggernaut-class vessels.

Some Xenobiologists have speculated that Engineer technology is not of their own, but in actuality is based on creatures even greater than they, hence, the presence of the much larger 'Space Jockey' found within the LV-426 Derelict.^[7]

The cargo hold of the Engineer derelict on LV-426 was filled with Xenomorph Eggs, which are held in stasis beneath a blue electrical mist. It has been speculated by fans that the Space Jockey's race are the creators of the Xenomorphs because of the similarities in design between the spacecraft and the biomechanical Xenomorphs.

While exploring the interior of the Engineer Temple, David observed a type of slime with an energy inside that was used to press buttons, activate doors, and objects. Also, there was one Engineer alive in a form of stasis similar to that used by Humans. Engineers were capable of holograms, terraforming atmospheres, bio-engineering, and perhaps even accelerating evolution.

History

At some point, the Engineers set out to recreate a species they dubbed "the Destroying Angel". Using a biological accelerant to accomplish such a task, the Engineers created various species including the Fulfremmen, humans, Arcturians, and the Xenomorph, as well as other mutated creatures. The results of several experiments were exhibited in the Gallery of the Ages, which was located in an Engineer city on the planet Aljanna in the Far Spinward Colonies. The Engineers were revered by the Arcturians, who dubbed them the "Star Teachers".

The Engineers were forced to abandon their worlds, however, when the Fulfremmen turned on them and unleashed the living Proto-Hive and their Proto-Xenomorphs on their creators. After losing a number of worlds to the scourge, the Engineers fled using an artefact dubbed the Lychgate. However, several members of the species were left behind in stasis at numerous locations, as were a number of experiments and at least one large population.

At some point approximately 2,000 years prior to 2093, the Engineers stationed on LV-223 initiated a plan to wipe out humanity by releasing the black liquid pathogen on Earth. However, they lost control of the pathogen and were killed. Four surviving Engineers took refuge within their ship, storing themselves within its hypersleep chambers; however, only one of them survived. Two other Engineers on the moon, survived as well.

In 2089, archaeologists Elizabeth Shaw and Charlie Holloway discovered a star map among several unconnected ancient cultures within a cave during their expedition on the Isle of Skye. They interpret this as an invitation from the Engineers rather than a warning to stay away. Shaw then contacted Peter Weyland, the elderly CEO/Creator of Weyland Corporation, for a proposal in order to gain enough funding for an expedition to follow the star map. Weyland agrees with the proposal and funds the creation of the scientific vessel Prometheus to follow the map to the distant moon LV-223.

On April 4, 2090, a probe sent by Weyland arrived on LV-223 to survey the moon. Before it could complete its readings however, it was stepped on and destroyed by a passing Engineer.

In 2093, after the USCSS Prometheus' two year voyage, the ship arrived on LV-223. The Prometheus crew explored the moon's surface where they came across the Engineer Temple. The crew entered the structure and discovered the bodies of a number of Engineers, as well as several Steatite Ampules stored within the structure. The crew's interference caused the pathogen stored within the Ampules to melt, a few crew members were exposed to the pathogen, and in the ensuing chaos most were killed. The android David successfully found the last living Engineer and informed Weyland, who was secretly aboard the ship the entire time. Weyland and his team went to the Engineers' ship to commune with the last Engineer however, upon waking; the Engineer decapitated David after a brief conversation and killed Weyland along with the entire party, save Shaw, who managed to escape.

The Engineer reactivated his ship and headed for Earth to carry out his original mission to wipe out the human race. The remaining crew later sacrificed themselves and the Prometheus to destroy the Engineer's ship. The Engineer survived and attacked Shaw within Prometheus' lifeboat, Shaw released the Trilobite she had extracted earlier from her womb as the result of intercourse with Holloway who was infected by the pathogen, which restrains and impregnates the Engineer while Shaw escapes. The Engineer later died and birthed a Deacon.

In 2094, David arrived at Planet 4 aboard a Engineer ship and bombed an Engineer city with the black liquid, wiping out the settlement and creating Neomorphs.

In 2104, the colony ship Covenant discovered Planet 4. After a series of deaths and a disaster that strands the crew on the planet, David leads the survivors to the Engineer city, filled with the petrified remains of the inhabitants.

In 2122, while returning from Thedus, the USCSS Nostromo was diverted to the Zeta Reticuli System, the Nostromo's onboard computer, MU-TH-UR, intercepted a distress beacon originating from LV-426. The crew members were awakened prematurely from their hypersleep, and they responded to the beacon and took the Nostromo to the planet. A three-person survey crew explored the planet's surface where they came across a crashed derelict ship. Upon entering the ship, they discovered the remains of a fossilized Engineer wearing a Bio-Suit and numerous eggs that were stored within the ship's cargo bay. Afterwards Kane was impregnated by a Facehugger and was taken back to the Nostromo for medical treatment, only to die a few hours later when a Chestburster burst violently out of his chest. The creature quickly matured into an adult and began killing the crew members one by one and led to the destruction of the Nostromo.

In 2137, the USCSS Anesidora discovered the derelict. Inside, the crew discovered the fossilized Engineer and equipment from the Nostromo. While exploring the ship, crew member Catherine Foster was attacked by a Facehugger, and the Anesidora subsequently headed to Sevastopol Station in search of help, triggering an outbreak there.

In 2179, the terraforming and research colony Hadley's Hope established on LV-426 was given a vague order from Weyland-Yutani executive Carter Burke to locate the derelict, having learned of the ship's location from the claims of the Nostromo's sole survivor Ellen Ripley. Surveyors Russ and Anne Jorden located the ship and discovered several dead Engineers within. Russ was attacked by a Facehugger and Anne pulled him out and radioed for help. Some of the rescue party also went into the derelict and were attacked. All of the victims were returned to the colony which eventually led to its downfall.

In 2184, the Xenomorph–worshiping cult the Children of the Two Divines travelled to the Arcturian homeworld of Arcturus in a bid to discover secrets within an Engineer temple located on the planet. Leader Jannes Ruedi attempted to use a Neuro Visor to read the mind of an Engineer in stasis; however, Ruedi was overcome by the readings, and the Engineer was set alight by his malfunctioning hypersleep chamber. The Engineer broke loose and attacked a United States Colonial Marine Corps unit sent to intercept Ruedi, before plunging into a waterway beneath the temple and falling to his death.

In 2186, two Engineers in stasis beneath the Svarog Mine on the Union of Progressive Peoples mining planet Shānmén were awakened by a group of miners fleeing a pathogenic attack on the surface. The pair were exposed to the substance, and mutated before attacking the survivors; both were killed by the cross–political paramilitary unit known as the Jackals.

Behind the scenes

Naming origins

"The Pilot" was so named by H. R. Giger, who originally designed the creature. It has become more popularly known as the "Space Jockey," a name that first appeared on a storyboard for the scene in Alien during which the creature first appears.^[8] Director Ridley Scott has admitted that he doesn't know who had christened it as such, but the name stuck and became the unofficial moniker for the creature on set.^[9] The name "Mala'kak" originated in Michael Jan Friedman's Aliens: Original Sin^[4] whilst the term "Ossian" was originally a fanon moniker, later adopted by Alien: The Roleplaying Game.^[1]

Alien

The derelict ship contains several thousand Alien Eggs. It is suggested by Ridley Scott in the director commentary to the film that the Space Jockey's ship was an "aircraft carrier or battle wagon of a civilization, and the eggs were a cargo which were essentially weapons. Like a large form of bacterialogical/biomechanoid warfare." The eggs, which are kept in the ship's hold, could presumably be dropped on an enemy planet, and the Aliens would proceed to kill the population as they spawned. "The Space Jockey was...the driver of the craft who is now, after many ages...has started to look like a perfect example of...where does biology end and technology begin, because he seems to have grafted...into what essentially was...a pilot's seat. But clearly from here, this is where the communication attempt would emanate from probably in an automatic transmission. So this creature obviously had experienced, maybe one of the eggs had been disturbed and a creature had got out, had attacked the rest of the crew...but let's say he was a part of the civilization he came from and now had melded into his seat." The Nostromo's computer, Mother, starts to translate the Space Jockey's transmission and it appears to Ripley to be a warning.

The novelization by Alan Dean Foster, on the other hand, states that Space Jockey's race found them on LV-426, and there has been no conclusive evidence shown in the feature film series supporting that the Space Jockey's race created the Xenomorph. Clearly, however, the Space Jockey's race have advanced technology, leaving open the possibility that they had a hand in the Xenomorph's creation.

Director Ridley Scott also makes note that he would like to make "an Alien 5 or Alien 6" where the audience would be privy to the home planet of the Xenomorphs and learn more about the Space Jockeys, but makes no reference to whether this is the same planet that the Space Jockey's race hails from.

According to James Cameron, the Space Jockey's craft picked up Alien Eggs and the pilot became infected by the dangerous cargo; the ship landed or crashed on LV-426 and the Space Jockey transmitted the signal as a warning.

Prometheus

In a 2011 interview with Filmophilia.com, director Ridley Scott revealed that Space Jockey in Alien is actually a suit containing the deceased being (which is never shown). Scott also revealed that his desire to explore the unaddressed story behind the ship on LV-426, the host of eggs aboard, and the mysterious pilot were his primary inspiration for returning to the franchise with Prometheus.^[10]

Covenant

Following the release of Alien: Covenant, debate amongst fans arose over whether the species that David wiped out during the events of the film were actually Engineers^[11], however the comments from the filmmakers in interviews, artbooks^[12], novelization, and commentary of the film confirmed that the species David wiped out were indeed Engineers. Additionally, David, during his research, noted that while the Engineers have taken steps to evolve themselves, their cities and their inhabitants of Planet 4 were preserved as cultural documents^[13]. No official source had ever explicitly stated that Planet 4 was the Engineers' homeworld, with official sources instead leaving their exact origins ambiguous. Current canonical sources such as Alien: The Roleplaying Game and its supplemental expansions have further bolstered the ambiguity surrounding the Engineer species' origins.^[14]

Trivia

Before the release of Prometheus, the Engineers were originally dubbed as the "Space Jockeys". The nickname was attached to it during production on Alien. Scott has stated he has no idea who christened the creature. People needed something to call this creature, and somehow Space Jockey stuck. But the creature has also had a host of other names, including the Pilot (H. R. Giger's original nickname for it), Pilots, James Cameron called it the "Big Dental Patient."^{[citation needed]}
Alien: The Roleplaying Game broadly speculates that the Space Jockey seen in the first film may in fact be a different species to the Engineers.^[7]
The Book of Alien notes that the actors and crew felt instinctively that the Space Jockey was a benign creature, though they could not say why.
In the novelization of Alien by Alan Dean Foster, Ash describes the Space Jockey's race as a noble people and hopes that mankind will encounter them under more pleasant circumstances.
Early Prometheus production art for the Engineer Bio-Suit included built-in weapons that look remarkably similar to the Yautja Plasmacaster. The production team of designers for the Prometheus film is composed of many artists that also worked in the Alien vs. Predator movies, hence the influence.
In an early script visualized but never written, the Pilot ship had crashed or landed on LV-426 some 10 million years prior to discovery by the Nostromo. It was depicted as having been dragged in some unknown manner to the top of a pyramidal structure, which was the top of an enormous subterranean temple containing the Xenomorph eggs. This is evident in the finished Alien film, when Kane notices the hole torn in the bottom of the Pilot ship. It should also be noted that despite later rewrites and storylines, Giger and O'Bannon designed the Pilot so that it appeared to be a sympathetic and friendly lifeform.
On the early draft script of Prometheus, the dialogue between the Last Engineer and David had nearly 5 pages. It revealed that the Engineers created the human race, but were disappointed with their creation because humans made wars and killed each other, calling them a "barbaric violent species."^[15] He mentioned a "mother's child" being taken back to Paradise to be taught the meaning of life and creation in order to educate the human race in Eden (i.e. Earth), but the humans decided to punish him. This hints at the history of Jesus.^[16]
Concept designers Neville Page and Carlos Huante who designed the Engineers used the Statue of Liberty, Michaelangelo's David and Elvis Presley as a visual influences for the design of the Engineer.^{[citation needed]}
Ridley Scott described the Engineers as "tall, elegant dark angels."^{[citation needed]}