A/N: Hello and welcome. So this is my first attempt at writing any Overwatch related fanfiction, as well as writing for a robot in general. This is just a brief one-shot and its a kinda sequel to 'The Last Bastion'. Just some internal reflection for Bastion.
Hope you enjoy.
The Last Ganymede
Siege Automaton E54 was never designed to express want, and yet in this moment, want was all it could feel.
The visual sensory screen scrolled with words associated with the despondent emotion the robot was feeling: extinction, termination, completion. The AI was aware of the origins of these words, even the though the source had been dead and gone for some time since his re-activation in the Black Forest. The words were apart of the virus that had corrupted E54 and many other SST automatons. Albeit, the words were insignificant in regards to the amount of still existing corrupted codes that had been forcibly conscripted into his CPU, but at the moment, Bastion wished it had not been as overlooked in his attempts to purge what he could of the programming.
For 6 years, 5 months and 26 days since his re-activation, the routine cleaning of his internal programming had only removed some of the Omnics old war protocols. Bastion was content knowing that he nowhere near what it used to be when first going online; a tool of war like many others had been. However, Bastion knew there would no way to erase all of what had been downloaded. Those codes would remain, forever apart of it's CPU, and nearly impossible to eradicate on his own. At least some of them had been purged and E54 had no doubt that the reason it had been able to repress the violent directives, would have been possible if not for the company it kept.
The yellow cardinal, whose inquisitive nature had awoken Bastion after years of stasis, had been its most devoted ally - more than any of his fellow Omnics had been. Yes, Bastion had been able to feel camaraderie towards the other automatons, but every instance had been deep in battle. It was not something that had been forced in any of them, since it was a common personality they all had in spite of the nefarious programming done. However, even he could tell how artificial it had actually been during the revolution. Bastion's memory banks only recalled destruction and chaos and the only semblance of what humans called friendship, had been to repair each other so they could keep fighting towards the objective. It simply didn't justify the strength the word was supposed to bird, though, had shown him what it meant and beyond.
That small, polite and peaceful creature had only demanded one thing of Bastion: his alliance - and permission to build a nest on his shoulder plate. It was a pittance in comparison to what the Omnic Crisis demanded and he would have done it regardless. The other Seige machines had regarded each other with empathy as well but they were just fellow soldiers carrying out orders. There had been no attachment beyond that.
With the cardinal, there was something far more harmonious. It wasn't just because of its genuine gentleness, but rather, the liberation Bastion's yellow feathered friend informed him of that he had never known. The bird didn't know anything about warfare, combat or revolution. It didn't know about death beyond what was natural in all organic life cycles. The concept of killing each other for political power was an alien idea that it would never learn nor needed to. Bastion was grateful that it was ignorant to such ideas, because in turn it spared him remembering the past. The curious, feathered creature, would never learn what the omnic was built for, did not care to ever find out and accepted him the moment he had stirred from hibernation. The cardinal just wanted to know who he was.
In retrospect to this revelation, Bastion had known nothing of the simple and silent teachings of peace that the Black Forest held but had been just as eager to learn about the same way about the bird.
The forest had changed the sentry, who had never known such reticent serenity before. With it's primitive environment and from merely observing its native habitants everyday tasks, it had spoken louder than any sound of gunfire he had heard in the past. There was room for peace and it accepted all forms of life, no matter their past deeds, as long as they themselves were willing to adopt it. The Black Forest would always protect him, as it did now, and as if it was a sentient being, welcomed him home. Perhaps that was why he was the only one that had survived. There were other automatons in the forest, overgrown as he had been, and despite his efforts, did not wake. Maybe their back-up power supplies had been depleted and they were now offline forever to be forgotten like E54 had; another fallen among the rubble. E54 was all that was left from the siege at Stuttgart.
Perhaps, it was because Bastion didn't recall off-lining in such a tranquil terrain that made him have these thoughts. In fact, he didn't remember much of why he had went into stasis in the first place. Bastion assumed it was to fix the severe damage it could not Self-Repair, but his data banks could not find any information that he had tried matter how much it searched. It was no longer an elusive enigma to him; the robot didn't care for trying to answer it anymore. Bastion accepted that he was alone without an objective anymore and chose to ignore the commands of the dead protocols. Still, the AI knew that he had never been without one. The AI had found his own self-purpose that had manifested itself as a welcomed distraction.
The cardinal had given it to him.
Perhaps it had been a part of his assimilation into the Black Forest, and the bird had been its teacher. Again, it seemed to be another testament of how Bastion had changed since his reactivation. How he was no longer the omnic it used to be; nothing other than another duplicate amongst a sea of stoic metal. There was… identity. Not just a serial number, but a different apperception of what he was.
Companion. That had been Bastion's new purpose. Even though it had been badged to him by chance, Bastion had accepted it despite never recognizing it as a mission; it was the only thing that seemed to compute logically. The war was over. The old sentry knew that it would most likely be rejected in the human inhabited city; humans rarely let go of grudges. It only made sense to remain with the bird. The same that had roused him and contained no prejudice for his kind...
The same that was no more and had completed it's life cycle.
After recharging, Bastion had onlined to find his friend unresponsive on his shoulder. The yellow bird had been in its usual spot; in the long abandoned nest of twigs that Bastion had helped the creature construct for its eggs long ago. The hatchlings departed after they had been strong enough to fly and explore their world on their own, but the adult bird had stayed behind in Bastion's company. It did not lay any more eggs after that point and instead settled in the abandoned nest where the children were born in.
At first, there was confusion that flooded the automaton until the AI finally understood.
Carefully, the sentry plucked the bird from its nest, being more tender with it than the robot had ever been. Raising its metallic hand to it's single blue optic, Bastion looked down at the cardinal at first expecting it to awaken and chirp, playing a game as it often did. E54 knew that was an illogical speculation to have, especially when it had no vital readings. Why did he think that when he held the reality before him? Still, it longed for the animal to do it regardless of the cold truth.
Perhaps its readings had been wrong.
As a precaution that it might be the case, Bastion produced his self-repair tool. Surely, there must be a mistake. His CPU sometimes did that due to the corrupted programming he still held on to.
Being as delicate as the omnic could be, and understanding the frailness of creature, Bastion gingerly touched the electrical tip of the repair unit to the middle of the bird's round, white chest. As lightly as it could administer, gave the bird a light shock and waited with anticipation.
When Bastion removed the repair-unit out of his view, his audio receptors caught himself letting out a distressing warble as soon as he noticed the small black spot of charred feathers on its breast.
Had he hurt it?
If the automaton did, the creature didn't stir to indicate that he had - the bird hadn't moved at all actually.
Desperation set in, not a common emotion for him, and waited for any signs of life. Time, although not measured in the woods, seemed to tick slowly by for him as he stared down at his friend. The bird, with its legs still in the air, its toes curled like spider legs, and its usually vibrant eyes closed tightly as if still suffering in excruciating pain, remained still no matter how many minutes fleeted away.
Tilting its head towards the cardinal, and rejecting the horrid certainty that he was not malfunctioning, attempted to use his repair-limb again.
There was a small electrical buzz, signaling the component itself was working, but as Bastion lifted it away, was greeted with the same depressing and previous result. The blotch had grown larger, and immediately panic began to run through his circuits. Surely he must be hurting the bird? Did the robot's involvement accelerate its expiration?! Was its death due to his actions?
With a sad heaviness, the automaton knew that was not true; the bird had already been gone before his attempts to resurrect him. So why still was the omnic having a difficult time with that rationality? Why did it feel as if it should be at fault for his actions? As if he had caused the bird's demise? What was the reason for the cardinal's death? Was it something that Bastion did unknowingly while recharging? Did something foul attack it? Another predator?
At first, the latter seemed like the plausible explanation but under further examination, could not find any evidence that supported the theory. It would have been acceptable despite feeling responsible that Bastion did not prevent it when it was happening. The only conclusion was the simplest answer, but the hardest to understand.
The cardinal had lived out its life.
For the longest moment, under the insurmountable weight of the realization, the robot, who was never designed to feel compassion or attachment to another living thing, was grief-stricken. Bastion knew that it was technically impossible to feel such a human emotion. He was an AI after all, and it simply was not reserved for what he was; there was no purpose to know grief. His purpose… which was not to feel anything when he was created, but still did. The omnic understood that these emotions were just electrical signals to explain events and nothing more and that it was the way of the world. That was it and nothing more. There shouldn't have been any human feeling derived from them. Yet… he had them, and there was nothing that could offer a reason to it besides one.
Perplexed and frightened for the first time in a very long time, E54 looked around the forest as if searching for a solution carved in the bark of the black spruce surrounding him. The sun, high in the sky but blocked from the canopy of evergreen needles, darkened as the sun was blocked by the encroaching clouds and casted Bastion in a heavy curtain of darkness.
Unwillingly it filled him with emptiness and dread. Making him feel more alone.
Looking down at the motionless cardinal in his palm, a beep, reminiscent of a disheartened sigh echoed from his vocalizer.
It was over now.
The bird was dead.
What was Bastion's purpose now?
Siege Automaton E54 was never designed to express want, and yet in this moment, want was all it could feel as he gazed down at his lifeless companion.
Bastion wanted his purpose back.
A/N: I didn't enjoy giving Bastion a gender specific pronoun because its a robot and it just seemed weird, and if it also did for you, I apologize. I couldn't think of anything else to call him. :/ Also, I hope Bastion was IC because I hadn't the slightest idea about him half of the time. ^-^;
Hope you enjoyed this little sad fic-let, leave a comment to let me know your thoughts if you like, and thank you for stopping by.