Sati: Rama-Kandra

How did Rama-Kandra consult with the Oracle before meeting with the Merovingian?

First, in M2, when Neo, Morpheus and Trinity are walking into Le Vrai (the Merovingian's restaurant), there is a brief, eerie moment where Neo sees Rama-Kandra being escorted out. This explains why Rama-Kandra drew Neo's attention, because Rama-Kandra would have appeared in gold code, just like Seraph. At this point, Neo knows that this means Rama-Kandra and Kamala are from the machine world.

Remember also that Rama-Kandra is actually a machine. He is in charge of "recycling operations" (liquefying dead bodies) at the "power plant" (humans in pods providing power to machines). For all we know, Rama-Kandra could have been the machine that took Neo away after Neo sacrificed himself. In order to speak with the Oracle in the Matrix, Rama-Kandra would have to jack into the Matrix by first going through the train station (and therefore the Merovingian). This would seem impossible, since the Merovingian hates the Oracle.

Fortunately for Rama-Kandra, the Oracle doesn't just know what is happening inside the Matrix. She knows what redpills in Zion are up to, and she knows what other machines such as sentinels are up to through her access to the Source (see the last 2 sections of Oracle: The Believer). Chances are, Rama-Kandra would have been able to communicate with the Oracle wirelessly through the Source without ever leaving his recycling duties.

Also, remember one key thing that Rama-Kandra said while talking to Neo in the train station that affirms this connection between the Oracle and other machines:

Neo: You know the Oracle?
Rama-Kandra: Everyone knows the Oracle.

Deletion Codes

Rama-Kandra gave the Merovingian the deletion code to the Oracle's outer shell. Why would a machine in charge of liquefying dead human bodies have such codes? It could be that Rama-Kandra's job is not limited to humans - he may also recycle machines. Having deletion codes to program shells would be the first step in the process of disposal for machines and/or programs in the Matrix.

The Assassin?

For years, I speculated that machines and programs always accepted their own deletion if they were no longer able to carry out their designed purpose. A big counter-example to this speculation is given in the ongoing memoir of a character named The Assassin in The Matrix Online video game. The Assassin's former job was to liquefy dead bodies in the real world, and when he was replaced by another machine without knowing why and was no longer allowed to perform his function, he devoted himself to getting revenge, seeking to kill all people, all machines, and destroy the entire Matrix. As a "coder's joke" since he essentially worked at a machine world garbage dump, he coded his Matrix form to consist of flies. He was a man who could travel through air vents by literally breaking apart into thousands of flies.

Aside from the "liquefying dead bodies" connection, how do we know Rama-Kandra became the Assassin?

  1. We've already seen that Rama-Kandra and his wife Kamala are willing to break the rules by smuggling Sati into the Matrix after she lost her purpose, so it seems likely he'd be willing to do the same for himself.

  2. Kamala and Rama-Kandra know how to code, because Sati calls them "mama" and "papa." Machines and programs do not reproduce, they build and code. This fits with the fact that the Assassin was a machine that "coded himself" into the Matrix.

  3. Reading the Assassin's ongoing memoir reveals that the Assassin was once a very loving, insightful, grateful man just like Rama-Kandra. He recognizes that he has what most would regard a disgusting job, but he loves it and is grateful for it.

  4. Being associated with Kamala (who is a highly intuitive program... possibly even the Oracle's creator) means that Rama-Kandra could be more human than most machines if his code were at all influenced by Kamala. He might give in to fear and hatred to such a degree that he wants to make the entire world pay for his pain, which is exactly what the Assassin describes.

For more on Sati's parents, see Conversations: Neo & Rama-Kandra.

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