The Last Earth

         It is hard to imagine first contact. Many thought, "Will they have music?" They do not have music. They do not have emotions, nor do they eat food, or age (as far as biologically, though, biology itself would not truly be used to classify 'them'). They do not have chairs either, so when they finally caught me (which i never thought they would), they simply stripped me and allowed me to freely roam the ship, knowing I could neither harm them or their ship. For the first week, I cried until my eyes dried, and screamed until I was hoarse. Always, they would show me other humans they brought in, they were always dead. They seemed to always bring them to me first, as if allowing me to inspect them. I had seen enough in the past years to numb my gag reflex.
         They would come in with about fifty or so, arms torn of, or shreds of people left, but they always kept the head, almost completely intact. About in the half of my second week, they brought me only the head. But it was one of my own. We called him Alan, but that was not his name. It was the name I gave him. I struggled to grasp it from their hands. Unfeeling, they shoved me aside, uncaring as to my screams at them. I wondered if they could hear, because they never spoke. I cried again for Alan that night (or day, no windows were on the ship, and it was very dimly lit). The next day, one unit, worker class, (we suspected they had an ant like society, with units like worker, soldier, both being the only we ever encountered) shoved me to draw my attention. Although it was a hard shove, I don't think it was meant to hurt me, they were completely emotionless, but also were keeping me alive somehow, even though it has been a long time since I've eaten. I can only wonder what they do to me as I sleep. But back to the subject... it took me with it, into a higher part of the ship. It must have taken over an hour to get there. It never slowed its pace, and kept droning along on the three legs. Its head, like all units, was distinctly unique. It had a large 'eye', that came out above where its forehead would be (in relation to a human head), slightly to the right. There was something that looked as though it had, but it was ripped out, leaving an empty hole for a jaw. There was no throat hole at the back however. Finally, we came to chamber, one that grew larger and wider with each step. It lead to a large gate, which opened without any visible trigger. I immediately threw up when I entered. All those faces, all those they had shown me, were attached to a machine, one with their flesh (almost like metal, but more flexible). Alan stood out, impaled upon a large tentacle.
"HUMAN," rang the fifty voices. It brought me to tears again. All I had been fighting for was surely lost.
"HUMAN, RESPOND," it said, without inflection. I finally prepared an answer, and as much as it pained me, I focused on the severed head of Alan.
"Yes?" was all I could manage. The large gate shut behind me, and the unit had left.
"THIS DEVICE WAS CREATED TO INTERFACE WITH YOU," it stated. The heads seemed just as without emotion as they did.
"You created this to speak with me?" I asked, knowing the answer. I think I said it out of disbelief, they never spoke.
"CORRECT, STATE QUERY, UNIT"
I was surprised to hear it call me unit, I was also surprised to see it wanted me to ask it questions.
"What are you?" I asked, again, I found the words I spoke furiously stupid.
"THIS UNIT IS THE COLLECTION OF INTERFACE CREATED WITH THE TASK OF INTEGRATING DATA FROM YOURSELF TO THE MAIN COLLECTION. UNIT DID NOT SPECIFY THE QUERY. THE COLLECTIVE IS TO RESPOND TO YOUR FOLLOWING QUESTION IN REFERENCE TO UNIT >GREATER THAN =EQUALS. UNITS WITHIN THIS CONSTRUCT ARE CREATED DIFFERENTLY THAN UNITS ON (subject :rEFerence; EARTH)"
I interupted, "Stop!" and so it stopped. "What can this 'unit' call you?"
"HOST" it responded.
"HOST, you want to get information from me, correct?"
"CORRECTION. DATA IS THE PRIMARY KNOWLEDGE BASE NEEDED TO FACILITATE CORRECTIONS."
"So, you don't know how to speak like human units? Can you properly speak like me?"
"CORRECT"
"Instead, try saying, no..."
"NO, IS CORRECT." HOST stated.
"HOST, why are you killing humanity?"
"PROCESS OF REMOVAL VITAL TO RELOCK CIPHER."
"What's the cipher?" I knew what a cipher was, but wondered what he referred to.
"MORE EXPLANATION REQUIRED. INITIATE?" It was the first question it asked.
"Yes, initiate..."
(I'll simplify in words a human can understand...)
         Host states that there is no beginning of the universe. The concept of a big bang is incorrect, it states. In fact, it is more correct in reverse. There is no creation of the universe, Host states, however, the galaxies in the universe are spinning faster, which is widening them (This goes against every theory I've ever heard, but I wasn't in the mood to argue with the severed heads of mankind). Once they reach a certain age, the possible mass within a galaxy becomes obsolete for the ever growing gravitational pull it has on the rest of the universe. Galaxies seemingly collide without reason, even though the alloted mass within the galaxy should not allow the galaxy to output such levels of gravity. Host says there are several differences in what matter is. Matter as we know it was what they refer to as matter #3, I'm guessing that they use a list of increasingly prevalent forms. Host says matter #3 is the highest concentration in galaxies such as ours. Oddly, he says that while most things are moving toward oblivion, matter becomes less and less compact. It says units such as themselves come from a mostly matter #7 universe. It appears that more space is between atoms the higher the scale goes, and vice versa, and the distance seems exponential in factor.
         When I asked what matter their weaponry shot (on a hunch), he responded with negative #10. I can only assume that the matter has been so compacted, that it is actually a completely different substance, because it seemed to be bright fire, where upon it met solid matter #3 it would disintegrate a portion of both matter.
         Back to the universe, Host claims that he created a galaxy of matter #7, because of its stability and odd effect on time. He claims, that the fabric of time is created entirely dependent on the matter around it. He states that matter #7 is unique, because it does not have destructive capabilities with most other matter types, beside negative #10, which he says disintegrates matter of all timelines (I'm guessing the weapons they use create the matter on the spot, somehow compressing it). This galaxy of #7 matter was the first cipher, which he unknowingly created at the time. Upon perceiving a threat to the existence of the universe, it created the idea of a cipher.
         A cipher may be described as thus: anything that, when triggers are met, create the perfect balance that will ensure the survival of the universe. Host thinks (or perhaps it truly does know) that humanity would have reached viable space exploration within only twenty five years! He says that humanity would figure out quick drive (which enable faster than light travel, by compounding the current matter and quickly reversing that, it would create an immense energy burst and flux in mass, time, and even space: apparently allowing travel through forms of matter. The matter of a substance at that speed becomes matter #0, which is where the atoms are compounded so closely that there is no space between them, and they vibrate so quickly that other matter not moving at the same frequency of vibration would be temporally shifted out of existence.
         He believes that we would evolve quicker than he did, and would catch up to his stage of evolution in a matter of one thousand years. Host gives humanity a lot of amazing praise, even though he does not show emotion behind it. An image of what he tells me is a fusion power source, appears seemingly from nowhere in front of me. Another appears, within an obvious human building. The equipment and design are remarkably similar. Host says that this was an experimental, but operational fusion power source.

Then he told me something that I'll never forget. Host says, it already lost to us.