The Diego Diaries: Inside the Matrix (393)
-0-There
He looked at them, three of his predecessors. None of them spoke, all of them looked ragged and one of them bore a wound that still looked raw. He stared at the wound, the assassination attempt obviously. "Nominus, you are hurt."
He glanced at Sentinel, then Prime again. "I was supposed to die. It took a while but I had the last laugh. Didn't I, Sentinel." He looked at the mech beside him with a slight smirk.
Sentinel shrugged. "It didn't matter. You didn't have the Matrix. The Council did." Sentinel looked at Optimus. "I suppose you are here for wisdom or something. I am afraid, my brother, that we don't have any."
Optimus considered that, then looked at Nova. He was Prowl's first Prime. He was someone with very dominionist ideas and worked hard to bring about a universe ruled by the Cybertronian race with him as its great leader. His ideal was one of bringing Cybertronian glory to the 'lesser masses' everywhere else and he was relentless in his effort to achieve these goals. "Nova, you have been gone a long time."
Nova looked at him, the anti-Nova and stepped closer. "You should have died in the war, Optimus. You are the destruction of my desires."
"You will never achieve them," Sentinel said turning to stare at the mech he had served as a rising security officer in the ranks of the army.
"I will," Nova said turning to look at Optimus. "I have my own space and there I work for my own ends and the greatness of our people. Cybertron will rise again."
"Just like the Guiding Hand fiasco?" Nominus said with some scorn. "How well did that go?"
Nova looked at Nominus. "You were a fraud, a space filler from the start."
Nominus smirked slightly. "I wasn't the only one with a fake Matrix, Nova."
Nova looked at him, then shrugged. "I won't waste my time with you, Nominus. I am sorry that someone's aim wasn't better."
"You are lost in the Benzuli Expansion, you and that fraud, Jhiaxus. Dai Atlas took the Guiding Hand's gifts and the Knights were reborn again. They have gone into the universe to save us from mechs like you, petty little tyrants who have their 'visions'. You will find that nothing from your time exists but death," Nominus said. He turned and looked at Optimus. "I was a place holder, someone waiting for you. You are The One. Sentinel wasn't him either. He was no more necessary than I was. I failed my mandate. I am loathed for it. You will be the arrow shot into the future, Optimus. You will succeed where we failed. There are many among you who can follow some far away orn. The youngling … Smokescreen, Hot Rod can help but he isn't the mech that one is. Your own son is worthy, this pure spark borne of the Matrix uniquely." He stepped closer. "Do not forget Nova. He is evil incarnate. His ambition dooms us all. I could not do what I was expected to do. The Matrix would not accept me so I pretended. Understand. Alpha Trion is of the Thirteen. The Pantheon watches. But the work is yours and our people's. I am with you, Optimus. I wish redemption. I wish my name to be remembered for something more than failure and brutality. You are not alone."
"Nice speech," Sentinel said. "If you didn't have the Matrix, if it didn't accept you, where was it?"
Nominus turned and glared at Sentinel. He shoved that worthy and stepped closer. "Ask the Council." He turned back. "Save Cybertron, Optimus."
Then they faded away.
Optimus stood a moment thinking about the torrent of information before him when he noticed someone standing quietly nearby. He turned and saw a little femme who looked like an older Hero, one who would be about the same age as Rambler. He walked toward her and knelt. "Who are you? How can I help you?"
She smiled and patted his face. "Follow me." She then turned and walked off into a distance that had nothing more to it than any other around him. He stood up and followed.
-0-Back here
:Ratchet:
:What?:
:If you want I can stow Hero:
Ratchet looked at Hero was was sitting slumped against her ada, sleepiness catching her in the intense silence of the moment. Before her like ebony statues, ten mechs stood on the Temple steps without moving a thing as they waited to escort their Prime when he returned. Around her, the family waited, most of the infants stowed or held in their sleepiness and boredom. She was fading too. :Hero, Atar wants to know if you want to go into his hold and lie down:
She looked up at Ratchet, then at Ironhide. Nodding sleepily, she reached for him. He took her, kissed her little face, then stowed her with Prowler. Around them, the others were parceled out. Sunspot lay against Blackjack, his affect one of someone falling asleep. Praxus was sound asleep in Alor's arms while Orion chatted with Tie Down and Ravel.
:Thanks. Little femme was sagging pretty good: Ratchet said grinning at Ironhide.
He nodded and they turned back watching the Temple with expectation and hopefulness. Two million five hundred thousand plus others did too.
-0-There
He followed the little femme to a road that led to a big house nearby. It was the Prime Residence, his former home. The little femme paused at the door, then opened it. He looked at her but she shook her helm no. He nodded and stepped inside, memories flooding him of other times. It was still the same as he walked further in heading for the office in the back near the garden. Entering, he saw a surprising sight.
Soundwave was there but he wasn't sitting in his chair. Megatron was. The younger version of him, a slightly mad looking mechanism standing beside the desk he surmised was Galvatron. They were going over the situation with Soundwave who looked as blase as he could make himself. A hard bot to read on good orns, he was doubly so today.
"You have made good progress, Soundwave. However, I am very unhappy to see that Shockwave is still missing. You haven't extinguished the Seekers either and Prime still lives."
Soundwave said nothing. He stood stoically, waiting for the shoe if it was going to, to fall.
"We ourselves have been busy. I would tell you the details but they bore me. I want the last goals accomplished before I get back. If they aren't, you will cease to please me and you know what that means," Megatron said. "I have been hunting and I am finding it thrilling. Allies are out there, most of them expendable of course. There can be only one ruler and I will be that. Do you understand, Soundwave?" Megatron asked.
Soundwave nodded. "I do."
"Let me do this, Atar. I can make it happen," Galvatron asked gazing at his father with an unholy expression.
"No. You will come with me. I enjoy the hunt with you," Megatron said rising. "You have much to learn and I am going to teach you. Someday you will rule Cybertron. The more you know, the better. Some day the Matrix will be mine along with not only Cybertron, but the entire universe. Then it will go to you, my heir."
Galvatron stared at Megatron a moment, then nodded. "As you wish," he said with an edge in his voice.
Then the scene faded.
Was it already done, this meeting? Was it coming? Was it coming in this universe or another one that had nothing to do with this one? Was it inevitable anymore than anything else he had seen? That was the puzzle of the Matrix. He had thought the masses of mechs going into the ocean were for him to understand and to some degree he did. They were the lost hopes and dreams of his people. All of the failure of creativity to bloom, the failure of hope had marched into the ocean of disappointment that had occupied so much of Cybertron's history.
Kudon was bearing it alone although everyone owned a piece of it. But even as he was, he was healing. Optimus had seen it happen before his optics and a part of him was glad. It would take forever he thought as he turned and began to walk again. The house disappeared behind him.
Snow began to fall, thick soft flakes that drifted downward. He looked up and saw them, masses of them falling together landing around him in a slowly growing carpet. There were no footprints in all directions but his own. He continued.
The sound was muffled from the mass of snowflakes, then he saw in the distance something stirring. Something was moving toward him, a group of figures. He considered them, understood that in the Matrix he was safe, then moved their direction.
As they came closer, he knew who they were. They were familiar, sacred, holy. Solus walked beside Prima, Alchemist and Nexus Prime. They came toward him, their size compatible to his own, their beauty and wisdom intense and magnificent.
He stopped to stare at them, the founders of their culture, civilization and Cybertron. Behind them came Quintus, the first scientist, Vector, the guardian of space and time, Micronus, the first mini-con and Amalgamous, the trickster and first transformer. They came forward until they reached him, then they stopped. Solus grinned. "You look surprised, brother."
He looked at her, then knelt, bowing his helm as he did. "Lady, I am honored by your presence and that of the greatness with you in the person of the Pantheon."
"You always have us, Matrix Bearer," Nexus said with a grin. "We are always with you. You are now with our brother, Alpha on the material plane. That pleases us greatly."
"Stand," Vector said.
Optimus did, his optics taking in all of them. They were beautiful, some bore the symbols of their responsibilities on their bodies like Vector, some were more subtle. All of them were breathtaking to him. "What do I do to serve you?" he asked.
Solus grinned. "You are always thinking of others. It is good for you to have your family around you. It would make you grim otherwise."
"This is about Primes and Primeship, Optimus," Alchemist said. "We are concerned about Cybertron. The future is unclear to us. It is not written yet for the most part. Alpha can see only so far into the future. But we are clear that you are on the right path. The colony makes us proud. We know that you believe Cybertron needs to come there too. We agree. It will come as it does. Be clear on your goals."
Optimus nodded. "I fear for Primus."
They considered that. "Do not underestimate our father," Prima said. "He is wise." He looked at the others. "We must go. We are with you. The path before you is yours to choose. Your instincts are good. We will comfort the masses with you when you go back to them and watch you on your journey. If you need us, we can come but the need must be dire."
Vector nodded. "Most of us … we have responsibilities to the universe beyond Cybertron but we are yours. Do not despair."
Optimus nodded, bowing his helm. "I will do my best for all of us, for Cybertron and those in danger from Megatron."
"We know. That is why you are Prime. That is why the Matrix chose you. That is why we waited for you. The others were not chosen. They were keeping the space waiting for you. Go in a good way, Optimus Prime," Solus said as she slowly faded away.
The others nodded, some of them smiling at him as they too disappeared before him. The snow grew into a blizzard, then it too faded. Venting a soft sigh, he looked around. He was back in the Temple again.
-0-TBC August 10, 2013