#cyberflora

[zoomzooml]

[Worldbuilding] Flora of Cybertron

With a word of introduction, it is worth mentioning what "cyberflora" is in general. Plants are primary producers in most terrestrial ecosystems and are the basic link in the food chain in that way or another. This is how things are on both Earth and Cybertron.

Transformers and mechanimals are derived from protoforms created directly by Vector Sigma, but plants are self-sustaining in this case. No life form reproduces sexually, and plants undergo a process that can be called self-fertilization. Some reproduce by pollenation. Pollen is nothing more than a naked or nearly naked, tiny protoform. Then it can rely on either pollinators or the wind. Once it lands in a suitable place, the pollen, like other organisms, will develop an armor, turning into a seed and burrow itself. Others have developed reproduction by dividing the shoot.

The environments on this globe are varied, conditioned by many types of plants, adapted to these conditions. However, there are a few that are at least recognizable almost everywhere.

One example is the Crested Sunflower. The largest and most recognizable part of it, to which it owes its name, is the solar panel which measures 4 to 8 meters in height. Thanks to a mechanized process similar in action to photosynthesis, from the light absorbed, the Sunflowers are able to produce energy that goes to Vector Sigma. The calyx contains energon - nectar - which the Sunflower shares with its pollinators, who, frequenting will spread the pollen so that it eventually lands on the right ground.

Another variety of sunflower is the Table Sunflower. The unusually large form is shaped like a tree, which measures from 30 to as much as 100 meters in height, sometimes even exceeding them. It is rarer and much more tenacious. The Table Sunflower has its solar panels always pointing parallel to the sky, and pollen develops under the plates to let the wind carry it away when its time comes. It performs a function similar to its smaller cousin, energy acquisition for Vector Sigma

According to the prevailing theory, the sunflower flora is one of Vector Sigma's main sources of the energy, which it is able to convert into energon, which then goes into the planet's circulation. For other Cybertronians, these plants are practically inedible and very unpalatable; it is possible to process them into energon essence, but this is controversial due to religious symbolism.

These are most likely the oldest plants created on Cybertron, but not the only ones.

Another example of flora, this time growing underwater, is Fuel Kelp, whose fruits - fuel bulbs - are a common energon. The plant's stem is a tangle of wires and tubes, and its fruits, stores of surplus absorbed nutrients. The fruits are soft and flexible. They reproduce by dividing the shoot, which makes them easy to reproduce artificially. This makes them a staple, fairly inexpensive food for Transformers.

Flower-like plants come in all sorts of shapes and forms, but most of them - at least terrestrial - can be structurally fitted into these types. Some trees will also fit.

The petals can be anther protection or solar panels. If they are armor solar panels usually develop as leaves. Pollen can be deposited on the anthers or directly on the edge of the pistil stigma (also called energon cup or nectar cup).

No ecosystem is free of parasites. Those affecting Cybertron's flora are usually invasive lichens that will digest host metal or virtually suck out energon. This can and will result in plants dying, crumbling and collapsing. Interestingly, some parasites haunting Cybertron will happily settle for the soil itself, which can lead to cracks in the ground, weakening the soil or chewing through root clusters, destroying entire habitats of flora or cocoons.

[thenamesblurrito]

eleven whole ask dumps

that��s a LOT! topics this time are: survivalists, cavemen, survival tv shows, Bloodron, plantformers, food storage, eating underwater, beast mode mouths, Rodimus and Abominus and flammability, and Rock Lords

as a matter of fact yes! it’s sort of difficult, because it’s a labor intensive process to mine, purify, distill, and store enough energon and other foodstuffs all by yourself unless your alt mode is like an energon refinery or something. so it isn’t a quick and easy solution for just anybody who has issues with the current regime. as it stands, it’s genuinely easier and safer for many junkers to hang around in the city than it is to rough it in the wilds, otherwise they’d be gone in a heartbeat.

but!

there’s certainly been folks who prefer roughing it to living in civilization. this has been true throughout history and isn’t specifically driven by the corruption of the Stratocracy. a popular counterculture in Kup’s youth was spelunkers/squatters who would specifically seek out old buried ruins and underground places to live in, like cavemen if you will, just because they could. there are antisocial folks and hermits and extreme introverts who would rather homestead than deal with anyone in their vicinity. there’s one crazy kook of a dedicated scientist in particular that i am still waffling about actually showing in SNAP’s storyline, but old gramma Glyph is definitely still kicking somewhere in the Forbidden Zone and has been since before size classes became a thing! she would absolutely fill the role this ask describes (not the same Glyph as the JAAT student, mind you, it’s just another common name)

there are still people who live in caves. no, not the folks i mentioned in the above answer, i mean like there are entire underground cities and everything. there’s a lot of stuff down there anyway! living underground is not unusual on Cybertron and a good percentage of infrastructure and industry isn’t even visible from the surface in some places

that said, there is archaeological evidence that the original Cybertronian civilizations actually developed below ground and migrated upward/outward! First City, a set of ruins swallowed by the Rust Sea, is the aptly named earliest appearance of a proper settlement aboveground, but it shows evidence of being a base camp before a proper city, and contains artifacts and materials thought to have been taken from belowground before being put in the city. the entire concept of Simfur was of a holy temple city that was already supposed to be underground before some great cataclysm sundered it so far beneath the surface that not even its original inhabitants could find it. so “cavepeople” were, in a way, the default from which mecha have branched out from to live on the surface

and re: eating mechanimals, that’s definitely a (relatively) recent cultural value, and it isn’t even universal. there’s been people eating mechanimals throughout history, and likewise there have been people squeamish and disapproving about it for just as long. the current social climate is disapproving, but that’s variable depending on when and where you look into history

fsdfhgljfsdghfk yknow what sure. on Carcer and Eukaris specifically because these are the cultures i think would be into that. the more widespread popular version of this is probably space travel survival instead of on-planet wilderness. like can you pilot a ship for a vorn with limited supplies out into the black and make it to your destination with minimal contact kind of challenge. not unlike those solo sailing challenges i suppose

okay so this was a joke ask from Jensen that has now fleshed out a piece of SNAP history thanks

Bloodron was a tyrant of Caminus during the Prime Wars who took over after the murder of the previous de facto Camien leaders, Solus Prime’s children Magnum and Pyra (the original Magnus and Mistress of Flame, respectively). he was successful where other conquerors had not been in part because of his ruthless execution of the original usurpers who murdered the twins, instead of trying to pander and please. while his methods were cruel, he was debatably the safest option for leadership at the time and was instrumental in putting down further unrest on the colony as even Cybertron was swallowed by chaos. he and his enemy/conjunx/??? Convoy (a name at this point, not yet a fancy title) worked together to thwart scheming insurrectionists vying for power amongst their familial and political blocs, which resulted in a mostly unified culture for Caminus many centuries later and gave them a legacy of being a very strong, put-together colony. the academic community remembers him and his period of history with mixed feelings. while what he did for Caminus was pretty good, all things considered, he was not exactly a good person himself

excellent questions!! i think the only plantformer i’ve got in my cast list atm is Botanica so i won’t have a lot of examples here. unlike beastformers looking like mechanimals, not a lot of plantformers actually take after a specific species of cyberflora. most seem to generate their own unique specimen, although in root mode many of them are quintoid frametypes

since cyberflora grow out of/need to be rooted to some kind of hotspots, plantformers often have very strong sparks, or at least a very high degree of energy cycling, and act as their own personalized hotspot. this gives them quicker and better than average healing, but it does mean they have a higher metabolism. some of them have alt modes that can process energon and/or package it. these are considered “fruit bearing” cyberflora alt modes, and are often given fuel processing functions much like vending machine, distillery, or refinery alt mode. this is really the only kind of food you’ll get from a plantformer, even though actual cyberflora are used for food in many many more ways than just energon fruit. most plantformer alt mode products won’t be eaten and are instead used in their function’s industry, or perhaps as a rare and expensive knick-knack in the same vein as some kind of handmade collector’s item

their mobility isn’t usually very high, in keeping with how most cyberflora function. filling a niche in the ecosystem may look like sifting metal, crystallizing minerals, conducting and rerouting electricity, or another small but significant part of planetary upkeep. as such, the majority of plantformers have alt modes designed to slot into a given environment where they can participate in the ecosystem, often moving only at the whims of their environment. a heavily cabled transmission tower tree meant to fit in amongst buzzing mangroves will have flexible bases and strong grounding roots as it connects to other trees with its cables. a lone lightning rod pine out on the prairie will have similar grounding roots that go even deeper and broader, meant to conduct lightning all the way to a planetary leyline, and windmill sequoias have perhaps the sturdiest, broadest trunks to brace their height against the movement of their milling boughs. on the opposite end of the spectrum, tangled cable tumbleweeds can unplug at any moment and be set adrift to seek out any new crevice or cranny to worm its wires into. it really depends on the plantformer’s individual alt mode. Botanica has root cabling to keep her steady when in alt mode, but her leaves and boughs are still mobile

this actually has less to do with stuff like mold or sour milk and more to do with expiring chemicals, decaying materials, and loss of charge. the point of energon is how it inherently carries a charge instead of just being burnt for power, but if you leave energon or batteries or what have you for too long, it’ll lose that charge. maybe it can be recharged, but you’ve lost an important part of your fuel just from waiting too long. undercharged energon is better than nothing, but it won’t fix your lethargy. expired chemicals can either be inert and useless or highly flammable/explosive/dangerous in some way depending on what it is and what kind of reaction it had over time. you don’t really wanna raid the pantry and pick up something that explodes in your hand because it expired a month ago. and decay isn’t always bad, with stuff like steel woolies turning into rust bunnies, but if you’re need an iron meal and instead find just a hunk of corroded rusty junk, that’s not gonna meet your nutritional needs. proper food storage is about minimizing corrosion and decay, preserving or restoring charge, and preventing adverse chemical reactions when possible, as well as keeping out pests like scraplets

that said, i think edible-grade energon can retain its charge for... at least a good while? it’ll longer than a month and still be a full meal, i’d say, if it’s just straight liquid energon on a regular charge. that’s why it’s kept in glass despite its delicacy, since glass isn’t a good conductor. so community pantries, dead drops, hideyholes and such are all fairly effective as long as everyone remembers to keep the spaces pretty clean and make sure nothing gets left too long, which is never a problem

ummmm.... hm. this is an off the wall question. i guess i think it would be weird and difficult. like, could you eat underwater?? could you take a bite of like i dunno what’s something that doesn’t instantly fall apart in water..... a candy cane? could you safely eat a candy cane underwater? probably yes if you were very careful to keep your throat closed and also try to force out all the water in your mouth before chewing and swallowing, but it would be hard. mecha aren’t in danger of choking/drowning like humans, and it’s safe to assume that if they’re already underwater then they probably have the seals for it, but still consuming a lot of water isn’t great for a mechanical species, and it’s not easy to make sure you’re not swallowing that along with your food

oh sure, like they’re perfectly functional mouths and all, the issue is just the connection to the fuel systems. no throat, as it were. whereas the folks who can eat in beast modes essentially have two esophagi that rearrange depending on what mode they’re in. for folks like Strafe who have intact beast heads in root mode, it’s possible they can use their jaw? like she in particular uses them as a second set of unwieldy hands, but a pocket is a good idea too, or a can opener, etc etc. chewing food just to spit it back out is probably something only a very determined person with a specific food craving is going to do, because most folks who aren’t able to chew would just get silted shakes to sip with a straw

oh all the time. Rodimus’s whole THING is setting himself on fire and just throwing himself into the fray. like that one Denethor scene in LOTR but madly cackling. he only bothers showing some finesse when around Drift who he wants to impress clearly requires more careful application of skill to beat. Abominus can’t set himself on fire like Rodimus can, but he can shoot flames from his beast head and will fan them higher with his wings, which means he can essentially generate a firestorm to stand in if necessary that will drive everyone else away. Elita 5 has some immunity to flame too as a pyrokinetic hero, but is in fact still vulnerable to heat unlike the other two. she won’t get scorched, but she does need to watch her temperature

in general mecha aren’t like extremely flammable, they have much much higher heat contact tolerance than humans, but ironically have lower atmospheric heat tolerance, because the majority of them use air cycling for cooling systems and so hot weather makes them overheat easily. buncha pansy computers. but they’ll think nothing of holding an open flame, picking up embers right from a fire, ducking through a burning doorway, setting off firecrackers in their hands, etc. their caution is more about smoke and soot clogging vents, or discolored paint, or getting dents from small explosions than actually burning. they start endangering themselves when the heat gets high enough to overtake their cooling systems or melt their kibble, or has enough force to punch like in an explosion, but even then they can struggle through until actual vital internal components are compromised, at which point they’re in danger of catching fire themselves. energon isn’t super flammable when in a controlled environment like their insides, and a liquid trail can catch fire, but it’ll take a mortal wound to really get someone burning up inside

hhhmmmmmmmmm i... don’t think i’m going to use them in SNAP, or at least this storyline. i’d probably make them extraterrestrial creatures sort of like what they were in TFA. they’d fit in with stories of demons and invaders for sure

[transingthoseformers]

Actually I am not imagining a post war au surrounding mecha who are trying to resurrect Cybertron's ecosystem

[iamthekaijuking]

Been getting back into Transformers and its lore as of late, and if I may ask, how do you picture Cybertron’s biosphere and wild clades?

For me anyway, I imagine it as composed of Mechanimals (Fauna), Cyberflora (Flora), and Cyberfungi (Fungi) as the larger-scale life present, while Nanites serve as the Protist and Bacteria equivalents instead. The basis of ecosystems here is founded upon the consumption of metals and Energon, the former for maintaining the body and the latter as fuel, and uniquely Cyberflora and Cyberfungi can metabolize their own Energon by absorbing sunlight and breaking down metals respectively.

As for how reproduction occurs here, I imagine it occurring in all these groups as first via consuming/absorbing large amounts of metals, then raising the present Spark’s energy to ignite a new Spark, after which said new Spark is implanted into the consumed metal and released to form a new member of that species. However, in the process of Spark-splicing, slight changes will be present within the child Spark that isn’t found in the parent Spark, allowing for mutations and thus evolution to occur. I might need to workshop this tho since it’d make identifying when new species emerge or split off hard

What’s your thoughts on this? I imagine Transformers themselves are a separate category from Mechanimals, ones that don’t consume other organisms to gain Energon, but instead extract raw deposits of Energon from the ground

I’ve never really thought about cybertron as a fully functioning biosphere before since I’ve only recently became a full fledged transformer fan and most continuities don’t have the transformers being naturally evolved beings but instead created by Primus himself.

But you do paint a good picture and after watching transformers one I did speculate about transformers biology with some of their weird ass lore being considered.

Apparently transformers have “CNA” which means they have a genetic code stored in cells, and cells have a liquid medium by necessity. So really if you wanted to detect if a transformer was nearby you wouldn’t need to spend so much money on an energon detector, just scratch a car and see if it bleeds.

I’m also going to assume that they have metal cell walls. Now since they theoretically have cell walls made of metal then they would be very inflexible and their mobility would be less than a plant and thus be nonexistent, but transformers are made of lots of independent moving parts. So it’s likely that in order to achieve mobility they’re actually made of zooids, meaning that they’re more similar to something like a Portuguese man o’ war in anatomy than to a human. Different zooids would form different structures like joints and hydraulics and support structures.

So tldr, transformers are aliens with a more metal heavy biochemistry who have cell walls like a plant and are composed of zooid colonies in order to be ambulatory. They also eat electricity and oil and look like dudes and tron bikes.

[strangeduckpaper]

Transformers Worldbuilding Misc. Part 1

(Taken from stuff I've posted on Discord before)

Cybertron

On the surface, Cybertron is the entirely mechanical landscape you'd expect.

But the deeper you dig, the closer to the core you get, the more...not necessarily organic, but organic adjacent you get. Cyberfauna, cyberflora, odd arrangements of servos and grey goo, Energon and Sentio Metallico.

But eventually, you get too close. Computer systems begin to fritz, metal begins to warp, Sentio Metallico twists into stranger and stranger shapes, energon itself seems to become caustic and deadly, and Cybertronian sparks are liable to simply...flicker out and die.

The Light of Primus is bright and hot, and to dwell too close to it's glory for too long is to invite death.

Primus

Primus is a Chthonic God, his power that of the planet itself.

Space, meanwhile, is viewed much less favourably, an empty void, the dwelling of Unicron the World-Eater.

The idea of lost Cybertonian colonies (like in the Cybertron or IDW 1 continuities) might be seen as acts of folly and hubris, rejection of Primus, and their loss a consequence of disobeying the "natural order of things".

Needless to say, it encourages an isolationist and close minded streak amongst the Cybertronians. Things not of Cybertron are to be mistrusted, dismissed, conquered and destroyed, stepping stones except for the ones powerful enough to be threats.

This viewpoint, of course, is a very significant piece of Decepticon dogma, as well as all the other imperialist and/or conservative factions that preceded them.

[rxng]

"I throw away broken things, yes, but..."

"What if someone ever wanted an original copy of Charoii's Guide to Cyberflora? It'd be an incredible gift!"

[anokha-swad]

uwhe-arts.tumblr.com

perry-rhodan.net/shop/item/9783845362342/perry-rhodan-3234-cyberflora-von-robert-corvus-e-book-epub

still closed . . . | uwhe-arts

[daryasizina]

@ksubi Leather Leggings and Jeans: A Bold Layering Trend🖤 I recently experimented with a unique fashion trend by layering leather leggings under a pair of Ksubi jeans, paired with a Transfer La Top Cyberflora. The leather leggings added a sleek and sexy touch to my outfit, while the Ksubi jeans provided a bit of texture and contrast. The Transfer La Top Cyberflora was the perfect finishing touch, with its vibrant colors and futuristic design. I received so many compliments on my outfit. I love taking risks with fashion and trying out new trends, and this look definitely paid off. If you're looking to add some edge to your wardrobe, I highly recommend trying out this unconventional layering technique. Don't be afraid to mix and match different pieces and textures – you never know what amazing combinations you might come up with! Photo by @shapovalov_m #ksubi #nyfw (at #NYFW) https://www.instagram.com/p/CqYulL7v5PK/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[ofvaporex]

A card amid a bouquet of golden metallico lilies from a famous flower boutique is delivered to Ratchet. There's also a basket of jelly cyberflora fruits. A healthy if sweet treat.

The courier insists on taking no tip. Leaving as quickly as they came.

The card is a simple holoprojection that reads " Rumor has it you weren't feeling too good doc. I hope your recovery, I needed, is swift. - Your generous benefactor.

Ps: Don't make me have to buy Crystal roses so soon after our last chat doc. Mechs care about you yknow? "

No other identifiers.

He has a theory, once he reads the note. Only one person he knows of has referred to himself as his benefactor. He'd search the mech down if he had the energy, but stuck in the berth to recover for now, all he can do is chuckle fondly, lounging back against the pillows with a sigh.

Well. It's a nice gesture. He'll have to send a message later. And perhaps finally put one pede in front of the other to jumpstart his dream. Whether or not Starscream approved.

If Swindle is still interested in assisting, of course.

[transingthoseformers]

oh it's so pretty like

It's so pretty goddamn pretty

[springingfromnothing]

" Glad you think so. Told you, make all this stuff myself. It's a pain in the aft to get the fruit sometimes." It often meant shady cybertronian dealers. Cybertron itself had a choke hold on what little cyberflora and fauna was going out into the galaxy now. Thankfully a few of the old colony worlds were less stingy. And he'd discovered some unique variants growing independently on other Cyberganic plants. " Here- candy limewire." He holds out the complicated looking crystalized twists," Very sour. But I like the chew and the way sour enhances somethings." Not that he's one to judge manners either. He only learned because of Kup, Impactor, and Prowl. He was expected to walk, talk, and act a certain way. Sure he had his fun, but once Impactor was gone... Well. Springer stepped up with Kup. Then Kup- Yea. Springer bites his own twists and takes a sip of his drink. Chewing with the liquid carefully to swallow both. Licking the crystals away after," But yea. I like to make my stuff because I can't fuel on just anything. So why not make it look good and taste good."

" Some yea. Some no." Springer does not elaborate. He does not care to. This time he puts a line of remaining cherry bombs into his drink. Its a lavender-blue hue that he pours from two seperate bottles to create a slowly sparkling drink. No rim this time though. A wedge of green twisted limewires and crystal rose petals on top. He sips this one, testing it. Before he uses a spare pick to stab three plumbobs from the jar. These go into a bowl and are slid to the edge of the bar. He can come and get them if he wants them so badly. " My energon needs are particular. So I make my own additives, blends, the whole like. A hobby of sorts, and I make some money on it on the side. A win win." Snorting as he presses the chilled energon glass to his cheek. Still watching the little mech fidget and squirm. " Some I know didn't have cards. Or their names aren't correct on the cards."

[strangeduckpaper]

In your TF universe, for each member of the Thirteen, what is their role, their Titan, their colony, and their Ore? Also I really like how you have Rung as the Thirteenth!

I've had so many conflicting thoughts about this I realized that I had comparative religion that ould vary throughout Cybertronian civilization and its offshoots, lol.

But in general, the Thirteen are teachers, saints of ideals and concepts. Prima is justice, Megatronus is passion, Solus is creativity, Maximo is cunning, Nexus and Micronus as in group and out group cooperation, etc.

Onyx Prime is responsible for cyberflora and cyberfauna, whose resemble to Earth fauna might be due to time travel shenanigans?

As for Titans and colonies, I don't think that they are dedicated to them, as the Titans themselves would be the 'children' of Micronus as explorers. The Titans could course be friendly with members of the Thirteen, and their crews/colonists might have had greater affiliation to one Prime compared to another. Caminus was populated by members of Solus' tribe and those dedicated to them, Devisiun's population would be descended from member's of Nexus Prime's tribe, etc. but other colonies, like Velocitron, Junkion, would be fairly 'generalist' populations.

As for the Ores, they would not be dedicated to the Primes either. If they aren't explicitly Shockwaves experiments, then they'd be relatively natural phenomena, the result of Energon, cybermatter, or sentio metallico being exposed to different environmental conditions, unusual substances, or odd phenomena.

[sheltiechicago]

The Cyberflora Kinetic Art Of Julia Nizamutdinova

Julia Nizamutdinova (Julia Cyberflora) — multidisciplinary artist, designer, inventor.

Her work is a continuous experiment with materials, technologies, and form. The study of the boundaries of art and design, real and virtual, living and nonliving, the structure of organisms and futuristic architectural objects. This process is like evolution. creatures and structures resulting from this evolution are called Cyberflora.

[gowithplana]

“ Cyberflora? Certainly.” Optimus smiles up at him, fins slanting forwards. His  own servos crossed over his chest. He thinks for a moment then brightens,” We do have some access to it. I can forward you some of those resources.” Optimus can think of a few business that have produced cyberflora arrangements for some events. Armor ruffling slightly as he taps a finger on his forearm. The doors swing open as Guardsmechs open them for the two with salutes. Optimus flicking his digits absently as they descend the stairs. Mechs and femmes pass them in all colors. Though few are as large as Grimlock, there are a handful of larger mechs in dark colors. Their helms bent as they walk. One even has wings. Optimus is thrilled that Grimlock arrived at...one of the better times possible. “ In the meantime. Should I notify maintenance to leave what’s already growing for you? We might have to adjust the wall and balcony if so. It gets cold in Iacon, especially the ammonia frost.” Picking their conversation back up, forcing himself to focus.

Brush (tiny Optimus touch!)

"-!!"

Grimlock flinched, audials darting back as his arm yanked away from the smaller Prime. It had caught him off guard, and he was rather unhappy about it.

[transformers-extrication]

How did Cybertronians evolve? Did they evolve or were they originally created by something/someone? Same for the cyberfauna. Did those evolve? Are they still evolving?

Also, are there any cyberflora?

There IS Cyberflora! I just don't have much in the way of ideas for them and I'm also generally more interested in drawing critters and bots over plants myself. The Fauna errs more on the side of naturally evolving, they're just not organic lifeforms, it's also why they don't transform but I wont say they haven't had some... external help here or there to push them to certain avenues, such as the Lilleth, they're too fragile to exist as they do, so it's not wrong to believe they're that way because someone wanted a purely ornamental species. They're like Earths Peacocks but they're all multicoloured messes that wouldn't survive on their own.

Cybertronians did evolve! To a degree.

The Quintessons started it, similar to G1, however, over many billions of years the Cybertronians did swap/intermingle codes creating more and new various body shapes, frames and the like, so yes, they did start 'evolving' via the sharing and intermingling of different lines of code in new generations. So they 'evolved'. That being said they still have heavy influence from when they were Quintesson-made. Fun fact: Their teeth are an indication of their heritage. It's also of note that curiously you can likely tell which side a cybertronian is on (in the war) by how their teeth are structured.

[spymeister]

what process does your muse have for styling their hair finish/polish?

Jazz honestly doesn't style much, but when he does- he has a pretty thorough care routine. Mostly, you'll see this after a mission- when he has to return to his original layer when he's having to use kibble.

He'll slip into whatever washrack he's using- and lock it down. A basket slung over his arm filled with thinner, primer, base layer, sublayer, top coat- and then the resin waxes to seal it. He's gotten used to using organic products because they last longer.

He takes off his sensitive items, the visor and extra sensors he carries with him. Even his extra armor is removed- and the first thing he does is indulge in a good shower. After that, is an oil-soak to loosen up gunk in the gears and fine points. It also lets him doze in warmth and relaxation for a while.

Once he's good, loose, and relaxed- the first thing to do is to take his detailing kit and begin to dig at his joints and gears. This is a time-consuming process and usually takes the bulk of the time allotted for personal grooming. He has an entire assortment of brushes, scrapers, squeegees and long, thin metal rods to push and pull at stuck grit and grossness. Unfortunately, in his job profession- congealed and burned energon in his gears is common.

Once his gears and joints are cleaned- the old layer is stripped off first- putting him down to his base graymetal. His nanites are stripped away as well, leaving him sensitive and twitchy. His sensor net calms down once the first primer is laid down- that base gray close to his natural armor color. An air-sprayer is used for an even coat- with fine brushes to get at detailed and small places. He uses a mirror for this, and a hell of a steady hand.

After the primer- he steps over to the dryer to let the hot air seal it. The second is a sub-layer, this one is for insulation and to let his natural cyberflora return to balance with his natural nanites. The sealant is good for protecting it from open air and cyber-parthenogens.

Lastly, the resin-wax coat is applied after the sealing top layer. This is likewise time spent in the dryer- allowing the shell to harden so to speak. This allows his natural coloring to come back- the titanium whites mixed with the onyx blacks. The racing stripes are done last as a wrap, sealing down the thin layer with a heat gun.

His faceplates are waxed and buffed next, then his claws once they're sharpened to a fine point and repainted. Only then, will he observe himself in a mirror- and nod sharply. Later, when he's more comfortable- he'll get someone to help him with his doors- but until then, he'll put them behind the protective plate at his back.