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Deus Ex Machina concept.

We don't need you! We need nothing!

― Deus Ex Machina to Neo[src]


The Deus Ex Machina[1] was the central interface of the Machine City, serving as the city and the machine's collective consciousness and "leader". It created a humanoid "face", similar to that of a human baby, from a swarm of flying insect-like droids, which it used to communicate.

History[]

Neo, after managing to fly past the Machine City's defenses with the hovercraft Logos, confronted the Machine entity and offered a proposal: In exchange for removing the out-of-control program, Smith, the Machines call a truce against Zion and humanity in the centennial Machine War.

The Deus Ex Machina, reflecting the intolerance that humanity once showed Machines, initially rejected Neo's assessment that Smith will destroy both the Matrix and Machine City. However, Neo managed to convince the Deus of the truth.

After Neo was jacked into the Matrix, the Deus monitored the situation. It appeared that, after Neo willingly allowed himself to be assimilated by Smith, two objectives occured that allowed Smith's deletion: First, Smith is now directly connected to Neo's avatar, which is a hard-line connected entity (Neo is "plugged in" directly to the Deus itself). Second, by assimilating Neo, Smith completed the very purpose he defined for himself.

In any case, moments after Neo was assimilated, the Deus sent a massive surge of energy through Neo's body. This surge is projected within the Matrix as a deletion program, waving through the simulated reality and wiping out the Smith/Neo avatar and destroying all other copies of Smith's code throughout the Matrix.

The Deus reverently gathered Neo's body in preparation for reinsertion of the Prime Program to reload the Matrix. Within the Matrix itself, a black cat walked quietly in the rain through the rubble of a heavily damaged street. It shivered as it disappeared into code, and the Matrix is reset, repairing the street; the cat reappeared and gave the same shiver, referencing an earlier explanation for déjà vu[2], when Neo noticed the same black cat pass by twice (it is explained to Neo that the phenomenon of déjà vu is actually a sign that an "adjustment" or "change" has been made to the code within the Matrix).

Demface color adj05

Concept art of Deus Ex Machina

The "face" of Deus Ex Machina was the face of a baby human, formed by thousands of tiny, almost insect-like machines. The body of the Deus was a large, half-globe with hundreds of long spines, and several small ports from where the small insect-like machines that form its face came from.

Personality[]

The Deus Ex Machina was the most powerful being in Machine City. Its personality was grave and proud. It shared, with many other powerful machines[3], a low opinion of humanity. It initially rejected Neo's help before being convinced by him that he needed Neo to defeat Smith.[4] Despite that, it did show a sense of honor towards Neo. After defeating Smith, not only did it honor the agreement and withdrew the sentinels, but also had the Machines carry Neo's body away.

Trivia[]

  • The face of Deus Ex Machina is based on a baby's face, according to the developers.
  • Deus ex Machina translates in Latin as "god from the machine"; and is used as a plot device when a seeming dilemma is suddenly and abruptly solved with the contrived and unexpected intervention of some new event, character, ability, or object.
  • The Deus is effectively the 'deity' of Machine City (and to some extent, the Matrix), adding an element of literal truth to its name.
  • Voiced by voice actor Kevin Michael Richardson, who also did the voice of Thadeus in the Animatrix entry Final Flight of the Osiris.

Gallery[]

Appearances[]

Notes[]

  1. This is the character's name, directly from the credits. "Deus ex machina" literally means "god from a machine". While the character itself may be seen to serve the literary purpose of a deus ex machina, the name may be ironic, as Neo himself serves this purpose from the Machines' perspective: he is essentially a "god" of the Matrix, created by the Machines, and it is his sudden presence in the Machine City which allows the Machines to deal with Smith.
  2. The Matrix
  3. such as Architect and Agent Smith
  4. The Matrix Revolutions
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