[He's right. For all their similarities, for all the ways in which the human brain is an incredible machine made flesh, how can a human mind possibly comprehend the omnic experience in its most essential form?
But then, human or omnic, how knowable is any mind? And with Jack's gaze settled attentively on him and his questions sincere, does Zenyatta particularly need him to understand him perfectly?]
At first, I did not want to leave. I thought I was malfunctioning. [In a technical sense, he was; he was acting against his function.] But I knew, also, that I could not stay. At first I simply wandered, searching for some grand new purpose that would set me at ease once more- if I had not found Mondatta and the others I am not sure what would have become of me.
[Perhaps he would have returned to the factory, clinging to some distant hope that he could silence his own thoughts. Perhaps he would have fallen into the world of Null Sector and their kind, twisted by bitterness and hurt.]
The Iris brought us together. From there, I suppose it is history.
[Jack, on the other hand, sometimes feels like he's done nothing but follow orders his entire life. That's what made him a good soldier, after all, and a better choice over Gabriel for strike commander of Overwatch. Operating outside the law now is almost refreshing, so perhaps he does understand what Zenyatta is talking about.
A little bit, anyway.]
The Iris.
[He's not sure he wants to get into an in-depth conversation about omnic religion, but he can't deny that he's curious.]
[Fortunately for Soldier: 76, Zenyatta is not inclined towards preaching. He touches the rim of his glass again with a thoughtful hum; no matter how many times he is asked the question, it never fails to seem both insurmountably huge and impossibly simple all at once.]
If you are at all familiar with the Buddhist concept of "nirvana" they are not so dissimilar.
[Although he is not sure what the Buddha would have had to say about artificial intelligence.]
The Iris is the state of absolute, transcendental unity to which all life aspires, consciously or not. Harmony [and he touches one finger to the glass again, only for a small, golden light to materialise within the oil like a star birthed from deepest space] and discord [a second finger, a second light: purple this time, swirling menacingly about the first] in a state of perfect balance.
[The glass gives a muted chime as he flicks its side; within, the gold and purple lights swirl across one another, mingling until their glow silvers and brightens- and vanishes.
[Though he is, of course, not a Buddhist, he understand the concept well enough, and it provides him good context for the Iris. Nirvana, just translated into something robots and AI can understand. Maybe something that humans can come to understand as well, though he knows they all have a lot of work to do in that department.
He can sense that Zenyatta is apologetic, and he tries to wave it off.]
It's not boring. I just had most of it beaten out of me during the Crisis, is all.
[He's not sure whether or not Zenyatta was around for it, but even if he's religious himself, Jack is sure he can understand what he means.]
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no subject
But then, human or omnic, how knowable is any mind? And with Jack's gaze settled attentively on him and his questions sincere, does Zenyatta particularly need him to understand him perfectly?]
At first, I did not want to leave. I thought I was malfunctioning. [In a technical sense, he was; he was acting against his function.] But I knew, also, that I could not stay. At first I simply wandered, searching for some grand new purpose that would set me at ease once more- if I had not found Mondatta and the others I am not sure what would have become of me.
[Perhaps he would have returned to the factory, clinging to some distant hope that he could silence his own thoughts. Perhaps he would have fallen into the world of Null Sector and their kind, twisted by bitterness and hurt.]
The Iris brought us together. From there, I suppose it is history.
no subject
A little bit, anyway.]
The Iris.
[He's not sure he wants to get into an in-depth conversation about omnic religion, but he can't deny that he's curious.]
What do you mean by that?
no subject
If you are at all familiar with the Buddhist concept of "nirvana" they are not so dissimilar.
[Although he is not sure what the Buddha would have had to say about artificial intelligence.]
The Iris is the state of absolute, transcendental unity to which all life aspires, consciously or not. Harmony [and he touches one finger to the glass again, only for a small, golden light to materialise within the oil like a star birthed from deepest space] and discord [a second finger, a second light: purple this time, swirling menacingly about the first] in a state of perfect balance.
[The glass gives a muted chime as he flicks its side; within, the gold and purple lights swirl across one another, mingling until their glow silvers and brightens- and vanishes.
His tone wanes faintly sardonic.]
I will not bore you with dogma, my friend.
no subject
He can sense that Zenyatta is apologetic, and he tries to wave it off.]
It's not boring. I just had most of it beaten out of me during the Crisis, is all.
[He's not sure whether or not Zenyatta was around for it, but even if he's religious himself, Jack is sure he can understand what he means.]