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Neither his memory banks nor his chronometer were any help in determining Nominus' current situation, but he had the good sense to know that waking up confused, attached to a medical berth in a room with no windows, and with no one but Senator Proteus to greet him was not a good sign.
“Greetings, Prime,” said Proteus. “Did you recharge well?”
“Proteus? What's going on?”
“That’s exactly what I want to know, so I’ll get to the point: where is the real Matrix?”
“What?”
“The real Matrix, Nominus. Where is it?" He sounded like he had been tired of this question long before entering this room. "While you were offline recovering from your injuries, we took that weight off your chest, only to discover that the symbol of your power you so proudly displayed is nothing but an ornament. So, what happened to the real one?”
Proteus was not giving Nominus any time to process all of this information. It was bad enough that Proteus knew about his secret, but he still didn’t know where he was or how he ended up here. Injuries? Straining his processor for answers, Nominus was able to conjure the image of Nova Plaza, a mech running towards him and then…
“The explosion! What happened? Proteus, how long have I been offline?”
Apparently sick of not getting answers —which really should have been Nominus’ position—, Proteus slammed his hand over the berthframe and used it as leverage to hover his face over Nominus’.
“After a tragic encounter with a suicide bomber,” Proteus started, with a tone that didn’t reflect any tragedy, “you were gravely injured and have been out for a cycle. I’ve been keeping this planet running in the meantime, and now you’re going to tell me where the real Matrix is so that I can keep doing that, or else I’ll put you back to sleep for a far longer time.”
Disregarding Proteus’ threats, Nominus took an invent and considered his situation. Proteus wouldn’t challenge him like this if he wasn’t sure he could get away with it. Given the timing and Proteus’ reaction, Nominus waking up now was no coincidence. Proteus must have the medical team working for him. The guards too.
“Tell me," said Nominus, while pulling himself up to sit on the berth, forcing Proteus to retreat, "was that bomber also your doing, or did you just get lucky?”
Proteus straightened up, and with a calm, cold tone he spoke down to Nominus. “If you’re finally catching up to your situation, you must know what I’m capable of doing. So now, would you be so kind as to answer my question?”
“I don’t know anything about the real Matrix, understand?” Nominus figured it would be pointless to drag this out or pretend otherwise. “The only Matrix I have ever held is the one you took from me.” Despite being his biggest secret, the confession left Nominus with an ease that took him by surprise. But after spending every night wondering when his farce would be unveiled, there was something freeing about the truth being out.
“Are you telling me,” Proteus spoke slowly, as if containing himself, “that all this time you’ve ruled by virtue of nothing but a lie?”
“Oh, I don’t want to hear anything about ruling with lies from you.”
But it was true. Nominus was meant to play a role to set things back into place after Nova’s disappearance had thrown them into chaos. Yes, even with a groggy processor he remembered Nova with such clarity it may as well be yesterday that he left on the Ark. How could Nominus ever forget him? Nova stood shining and proud, the hero of the Civil War. That was a mech who could keep things in order. As the first to inherit his legacy, Nominus always strived to keep up the dignified image of a Prime, not letting any semblance of his true nature peek through.
"Why the animosity, anyway?" Nominus asked. "I’ve never done anything to you."
Proteus smiled with disdain. "That's right, Nominus Prime. You’ve never done anything. You've never done anything at all. At least, nothing of value."
"Well, you and the Senate don't really let me do anything."
"’Let me?’" Proteus looked at Nominus like his mere presence sullied Proteus' perfectly shiny plating. "Well, I suppose I was a fool not to see through your secret before. Is that how a Prime speaks? You think anyone 'lets me' do anything? You think the Council would ‘let me’ do as I please? No. All the power I have I gained for myself, while you have let everyone else control your planet for you."
Nominus supposed he had been so caught up in appearances that he neglected to take real action. But what could he have done? He knew that his claim to power was balanced on a thin line. With everyone else playing their political games, Nominus barely managed to stay afloat amongst the competing currents. It had definitely gotten worse in the past couple of millennia, there had been a time when initiative didn't come so hard…
"Regardless," Nominus continued, choosing to cut that conversation short, "you do seem worked up. What's wrong? Is the Council giving you more trouble than usual?"
"The Council? Oh, Nominus, you've missed a lot during your nap. The Council is struggling to maintain any relevance, and soon enough they won't be able to give me trouble ever again."
"Something else then. Senator Shockwave?"
"Shockwave won't take any space in my processor for longer either." Proteus put his hands behind his back and started pacing around the room like a one-person parade. "You see, despite some minor inconveniences, things are looking in my favor. Recently, the people of Cybertron have been getting it into their heads that classifying the populace based on alt-modes is… unjust. At first I thought those were dangerous ideas… but well, if it diminishes the Council and makes me look favorable, who am I to deny people what they want?"
"What are you saying?” That was something Nominus didn’t expect to hear. “Mechs roaming free regardless of what they were made to do? That's not what Primus intended!"
"I don't want to hear about what Primus intended from you."
"But if you disregard functionism, if you take away the ground this planet rests on, what's to keep mechs from getting ideas? From wanting more than their due? How are you going to keep your power with no social order?" Sure, dissatisfactions regarding functionism were nothing new, but to let that kind of thought thrive on the level Proteus was implying was unthinkable.
"Oh, don't be so fatalistic. I'm not about to let the planet fall to anarchy. I just need their leashes to be more… subtle."
"You don't look to me like someone who has things under control." Rather, under all that haughtiness, Proteus spoke like someone trying to convince himself of his own words. "Are you sure you can handle it all?"
"My dear Nominus," Proteus spoke with a tone so sweet it left no question about its mocking nature, "you don't have to worry about me. Simple inconveniences, I tell you. I would worry about you."
"Yes, about that. What now? I don't suppose you have any use for me anymore."
"You're correct. So sorry, dear. I could let you keep your farce in exchange for good behavior, but since anyone can be Prime now, I might as well replace you with someone more… reliable."
That was to be expected. Nominus had no one to vouch for his usefulness to Proteus. Despite having allowed for the Council's influence on the Senate to diminish, he had no strong alliances amongst the Senators… or anywhere. All that effort and it seems the facade of Prime was the only thing he had going for him, and now without even that, Nominus' end was inevitable.
It may be that his circuits were still lagging from such a long sleep, but Nominus couldn't bring himself to care. He had been playing the role of Prime for so long and now he was just tired.
Still, he could make something out of this last meeting with Proteus.
"Let me guess, you're going to make Sentinel a Prime?" Proteus seemed surprised at his guess, but as little as the Senator thought of him, Nominus didn't stay Prime this long by being unobservant. "Really, Proteus? That brute? And you think I'm unfit for the title?"
"Sentinel can be trusted to do as he's told. And what we need right now is someone that can lead our security forces."
"I'm sure you do." Nominus leaned forward, cracking his first smile since he woke up. "And I'm sure it has nothing to do with keeping the population with its modern ideas in check. After all, you have it all under control. Say, I don't suppose this has anything to do with why you're so desperate to find the matrix?"
"As I said, you don't have to worry about any of that now." Proteus' gaze on Nominus was unfaltering, as were his words. "Let me tell you what's going to happen: after all this time struggling to stay alive, your spark is going to give out and you are going to die. And no one will care, Nominus. No one on Cybertron will mourn their Prime and the only reason people will remember your name is to have something to call the time of your so-called reign. Consider yourself lucky for that."
Someone would have cared, once, a long time ago. But when he was gone, Nominus felt like he had lost his very sight. By the time he had recovered from his mourning, everyone with any power on Cybertron had moved on without him and Nominus' agency never quite recovered. Suddenly, Nominus was struck with how pathetic of a mech he really was, but as soon as the realization came he discarded it. Lamenting that sort of thing would be pointless now.
"And you, Proteus? Who will mourn you when you die? Sentinel may be loyal, but as I recall, he's not one for affection."
It may have been questionable to test his luck when he was completely at Proteus' mercy, but what was he going to do? Make it hurt? Proteus couldn't have his corpse looking out of the ordinary. Some medics can't be bought, which was exactly why Nominus had hired Ratchet. And if Proteus was petty enough to risk his plans, it was well worth the pain.
But Proteus didn't react, he just smiled and continued as if Nominus had said nothing. "Have another small consolation: even if you don't deserve it, I will personally make sure that you get a funeral worthy of a Prime. Trust me, it is going to be a blast."
"Thank you very much. Now if you're done rubbing your supposed victory over a fake Prime without any real power, you can let an old mech rest, and save your goading for when you actually win something.”
Nominus settled on the berth and turned off his optics, declaring the conversation over. "Turn off the lights when you leave, will you?"
As Nominus fell into recharge, he wondered what would befall Cybertron from now on. But Proteus was right, at least, that it was no longer his concern.