Kael looked back at his noodles. He took a bite. It tasted like ginger—sharp, earthy, and unmistakable. It didn't matter if the ginger was grown in a lab or a field in old Earth. The heat on his tongue was his own.
He realized then that they weren't living "beyond" culture. They were living in the space where culture finally stopped being a wall and started being a bridge. "The noodles are good," he said simply. Beyond Culture
"But if everything is software, nothing is sacred," Kael countered. Kael looked back at his noodles
Sora leaned in, her kimono flickering to a deep, solemn crimson. "Is the kindness I feel for you less real because I wasn't 'raised' with a specific tradition to define it? We are the first generation that gets to be human without the script. That’s not a loss, Kael. It’s an evolution." It didn't matter if the ginger was grown