The whispers of the crowd did nothing to hinder the strange group as they begin to approach Chang QinFei. The tigress-humanoid lady was the first to reach her.

"Ta tol't tho—" The feline female began to speak but was stopped short by the male with the lion-like mane, who spoke rapidly with the strange language the feline used earlier. He was gesturing at QinFei while seemingly explaining something.

Chang QinFei wasn't sure how to handle the situation, thinking that maybe they had met with another mannequin before her and had confused the two of them. Mannequins don't quite have much to differ with, after all, compared to actual organic beings, as they are usually mass produced with ready-made molds.

"Kah, kho lattah, tal't." The tiger-like female nodded along with the lion-like male as her face showed sighs of reluctance.

Chang QinFei looked down to see the two child-goat hybrid and see that the girl seems to be staring at her with interest. The boy was politely standing beside the bulky male. They stood behind the tiger-lady and the lion-man, as if waiting for them to make the decision. With nothing to do, Chang QinFei said hi to the female goat-child.

The child broke into a smile and nodded as if she approved of Chang QinFei and then launch into an enthusiastic greetings.

"Qul kiki ko ha! Kali ko lak laki!"

Slightly dazed with the foreign greeting, Chang QinFei paused and turned her gaze back at the tiger-female and lion-man.

The bulky stony-man spoke to the girl in the same language, likely about the difference in languages QinFei uses.

That's right, aliens have their own language too. Chang QinFei had forgotten about this aspect of culture shock since she had only verbally interacted with Engelina Trees and a NurseBot. Engelina must have known the language enough to convey some message. Eventually she had to pass the Drystal to her and Stella Belle to explain everything essential.

"It's okay," Chang QinFei waved her arms as slowly, in order to look more like humble wave rather than a that of a threat. If only she could spread her dummy fingers, she lamented briefly at the rigidness of her current vessel.

"Kho latara te." The tiger-lady spoke to QinFei with a furry hand patting over her chest. Was she introducing herself?

The tiger-lady took out what seemed to be an amulet made of purple tinted frosted glass from a bag that resembled a briefcase she had slung around her torso. She taps a few times onto it, it made a whirring sound, and hands it to Chang QinFei. QinFei looked at the amulet and looked at the tiger-lady. The tiger-lady then took QinFei's hands to insist on giving the gift. It probably is a method of contact.

However, it didn't go as planned. Chang QinFei's palms are plastic, fixed and inflexible. The fingers doesn't curl up according to will, therefore no objects can truly be grabbed. The lion-man bellowed a laughed as the tiger-lady jabbed him in embarrassment. She turned behind towards the smiling rock-man. The tiger-lady didn't need to ask him, but he handed over a pouch. The tiger-lady must have replied a word of thanks as she slides the amulet into the pouch and pulled at the long sting to close the opening. 

Chang QinFei wasn't sure what was the etiquette of the aliens and if she should be accepting such thing, so she tried to wave her hands slowly again to indicate that she wasn't worth the trouble. No one heed the mannequin, though.

Looking at the QinFei's casual clothing that consist of a loose parka and cargo pants, the tiger-lady points at the QinFei's waist area of the pants, where the belt usually sits, and look at her questioningly. QinFei reluctantly stepped forward to offer her waistband loops. The tiger-lady secured the pouch easily and gives QinFei a pat on the hands.

QinFei thought it was the end of it but who knew what the tiger-lady thought when a grin split across her face, revealing the dimples that was hard to see amidst the tiger stripes.

The tiger-lady fired another rapid sentences at the lion-man. He paused with a skeptical look towards Chang QinFei and shrugged along with some reply. The tiger-lady rolled her eyes, shocking QinFei with another revelation that the mannerism of the aliens weren't much different from the mannerism of the humans either. The tiger-lady looked towards the rock-man for some response. The bulky figure's nod made the tigress smile even wider. This in turn stimulated the female goat-child, who bounced with such joy. The male goat-child still smiled politely, but it contained a little more excited support.

Chang QinFei wanted to know, more than ever, whatever they were talking about that got them excited. The tiger-lady turned, as if to walk away, but still held onto the mannequin, tugging at her, beckoning her to follow the group.

QinFei know that it wasn't a wise choice, so she hesitated. Her eyes scanned around the watching crowds that dispersed a little during the alien's conversation. There was no one to stop or help her.

Chang QinFei reconsidered her hesitation and helplessly decided that even if it wasn't wise, she didn't really have much to lose after having lost everything, including her life and her identity. And so, our silly dummy followed the five strangers as the sun cross the sky.

***

A gang of five beast-human hybrid looking aliens and one mannequin does attract a lot of attention, whether positive or not, it didn't mattered anymore.

The adult feline female seemed to be leading them as she navigated the way with a glass tablet. it seemed to be lit with information from within. The female goat-child skipped ahead, often stopping to look back at the tigress figure as she faced split pathways.The lion-man would so often sniff with delighted curiosity at the air.

Chang QinFei had not smelt fragrance of any sort and wondered if it was her lacking sense of smell or the heightened sense of smell they had. The question was put away into the back of her mind for a later time.

They soon reached a destination. Peering at the signboard, Chang QinFei saw that they had stopped at a cafe. Puzzled by mysterious reason behind her being brought here, she looked at the group members for clues. The leading tigress pushed open the door, pulling along QinFei. The group filed behind them though the human-sized door, leaving the rocky man with no choice but to enter with his body facing sideways, He almost had to duck, but the top of the door frame was barely scraping against his bald head.

Chang QinFei would have laughed at the sight but she didn't want to appear rude, but the goat girl freely giggled.The stony-man did not frown. Rather, he smiled along the humor.

A loud laughter from the other side cut short Chang QinFei's basking in the wholesome view, and QinFei swiveled her head back to the front and see another busty lady with sleeves tattoos on her right arm reaching all the way up to her neck. This time it's human, though

Ah! Badass beauty. Truly a sight fit for cyberpunk comic right about now.

Well, what do one know, the cafe happened to be a make-shift cyberpunk parlor too. And, our dummy is about to find out the intention of our Space Pirate friends.

"Kah! Ketta teto!" Apparently the tattooed beauty speaks aliens too. The two ladies conversed a little more with more animated gestures.

"Khrifa," The tigress gestured for the mannequin to join. "khrifa, khrifa!" That probably meant something along the lines of, come on over here.

Our silly mannequin shuffled over.

The tigress continues to speak as she gestured to Chang QinFei's hands. The tattooed lady nodded and faced the mannequin.

"Bi'An said she wants to offer you the opportunity to upgrade your parts."

"M-my parts?" Chang QinFei had an inkling but she wasn't sure.

"You're a synthmanoid, right? So, you can change your parts, you won't feel pain, promise. Plus, it will help. A lot." The tattooed lady gave a one-sided smile.

"How much would it cost?" Chang QinFei's worldly knowledge may be lacking more so after the alien invasion—can it still be considered invasion even if they have been peaceful in their settling?—but she still understood that there was no such thing as free lunch.

A smirk spread across the tattooed lady's face, "your first born son."

Instinctively backing away, Chang QinFei stuttered, "T-then, it's o-okay. No need, ba. I-i am f-fin—"

The tattooed woman burst into laughter, "That was a joke. It's free of charge. But it would be awesome if you'd help them with something in return." She nod her head towards the group.

"H-help with w-what?" Help? What help can she give, as a mannequin, ah? It better not be illegal!

"You were once one of us, were you not? You can help them by providing insight to the custom and etiquette we have here. It doesn't have to be a lot, just a few vital advice."

"Insight? How? I don't know... umm... how to talk to them?" She don't know how to call their language without using the word 'alien'.

"Right, ah, right!" The tattooed lady turned behind the counters and searched for a moment. She then pulled out a Drystal. "This one contains all the language, we might update a new version with the language of our Earth, but I think for now it's fine, ba. You can request the updated language from the Lotus Lab any time." She hands over the Drystal to QinFei and then added thoughtfully, "You can request anyone for it in fact, but Lotus Lab always have the latest releases. It's better that way."

"Oh, thanks." QinFei looked at the Drystal that sits atop her open palm.

"Go on, we can wait."

"Oh." The encouragement gave Chang QinFei some confidence and she closed her eyes to picture herself absorbing the contents of the Drystal.

***

"What do you think of this model, Snow Capturer?" The tiger-lady pointed at a intricately designed mechanic arm. The sophisticated swirls of acanthus leaves brought it a feel of the mid-medieval European's art nouveau elegant style. "It have pretty design, Snow Capturer"

Not even a few seconds after the recommendation, another one was made, "Ooh, this one can change color, Snow Capturer!" It indeed could change colors by pushing some sort of dials on the latex-like materials.

Being called Snow Capturer  felt awkward for Chang QinFei, even though she knew that was what her name was roughly translated to. She certainly did not have any affinity with cold weathers, ah! Besides, A'Xue's self-made nickname... was because of her name¹Xue means 'snow', Qin means 'to capture', and Fei means 'the fall of snow'!

"Bi'An,"—Ai ya, the tigress lady's name certainly did not suit her²狴犴(Bi'An) where An has a radical of 犬which meant dog, which is canine not feline, hehe plus, BiAn also sort of means "guard keeper/watchdog" kinda, ah!—"a simple one will do, ba. Just enough to hold and catch is okay." QinFei didn't want to picky, even if it was a gift she could choose.

Bi'An proceed to ignore the mannequin as she chatter on with the leonine male, ChaoFeng.

Of course, Chang QinFei couldn't ignore the fact that this group seemed to bear names that resembled some of the names of the mythical Nine Sons of the Dragon King. Because of this, QinFei didn't want to accidentally offend them by being rude without knowing the full etiquette. Or at  least, that's what she told herself as she look on at the displayed cybernetics limbs all around. There is even one with spring loaded legs, seemingly to give extra jumping boost. But all she needed was just some normal hand and feet, right?

Wrong! And, our silly dummy doesn't know that yet. QinFei should have spoil herself for once right then to save herself from future troubles of learning blacksmith. But, who can say anything about fate, ah!

ChaoFeng, the leonine male whistled as he knocks his knuckles onto a heroic-looking helmet that has lightning bolt motif covering the temples. It also had retractable breathing mask. It looked small, though, compared to the bushy mane that clouds over his head and nape. He truly resembles a lion.

Looking at the next helmet with a mischievous humor, ChaoFeng took it and toss it over to the biggest figure in the room. "BaXia, this might fit you." The helmet was the size of a teen's head.

BaXia, the male with rocky skin and huge frame, can be best described as Testudine, turtle-like. His skin is actually covered by a layer of exoskeleton, hence the armor-like appearance. He truly looks like a gentle version of the hulk.

Baxia caught the helmet, and finding humor in ChaoFeng's jest, he put it atop his head. It sat like a toy tiara on a grown man, and the children laughed. Or rather PuLao, the female goat-child, laughed as QiuNiu, the male goat-child, smiled.

Chang QinFei wanted to smile at the sight too. But she couldn't, so she continued to browse through the impressive collections of cybernetics limbs and sleek prosthetic. Each pieces was said to be handcrafted by various reputable blacksmiths and are least likely to be reproduced. There are many styles that are similar to one another, but those are usually due to other blacksmith being inspired by another works that they had to make a mark of their own in the market.

As expected, with each variation, the function, too, differs in a wide range of spectrum. Some may have similarities in functions, like the nuzzle on the forearms can be flamethrowers for one, and a projectile launcher for another. All of the works are he products of the blacksmiths' wild heroic imaginations.

Of course, there are some that just look pretty, like the glittering chrome holographic set of helmet, limbs with detachable wrist where one can replace it with the other accessorized palms. There is one of a cat's paws and detachable tail included. Truly wild.

After what seemed like hours, Chang QinFei finally made her choice, with the approval of Bi'An and Sandra Fierce, the tattooed lady.

The set of cybernetic limbs she chose seemed to be very simple compared to the displayed glorious products awaiting new users, but it was of top notch for QinFei. It's made mostly of stainless steel with mobile fingers and wrist. The flexibility was insane, but the fingers sealed the deal for QinFei. There is a watch-like device attached to the wrist, much like the smart-watch that she used to own back then. She could get used to it.

The leg pair of the set was more like a mammal's hind limb, it has great balance and power behind each leap. The way it bends, however, might need some effort on QinFei's part to get used to. She had to think, that where her knees and ankles are, much higher. But she could feel herself getting used to prance around like the cats in the videos of funny animals she used to watch back then. Ah, such simple days.

There was another attachment that came with the set though, cat tail for balance and, if the user is talented enough, extra limb-like function. QinFei doubt she'd need it but, hey, just in case. Plus, Bi'An insist she shouldn't miss out on the tail-crazed trend just this once.

Trying out the set was different from having it put on permanently, so QinFei was forced promise that she would checkup every three days, for the first two weeks, with a fellow blacksmiths or cybernetics and prosthetic agents. Lotus Lab could do the checkup just as well, too. Bi'An swore that she would remind Chang QinFei when the time comes too, if she forgets to.

Only then, that Sandra let them go without much fuss. And so, our silly mannequin now looked quite a sight with plastic torso and head, along with the steel cyborg-like feline limbs. The tail attachment is tucked away in a bag, though. No need for that for now. Or ever, QinFei hoped.

With such a dramatic makeover, Bi'An now get to convince QinFei into following them to stay over at a resident they were provided for the treaty meeting they were going to attend the next day. Putting aside the excitement of her new body, Chang QinFei listened carefully as Bi'An explained the procedures of the treaty meeting.

They were to provide some support and benefit to the humans in exchange of being able to seamlessly settle down among them without offending anyone. They truly wish to co-exist with the people like they did with the natives of other planets they have settled in too. They also wanted to offer freedom to travel to the planets they have access to, in order to show sincerity. The only ultimate goal they had in mind was that to mingle with every existing life-forms they can come in contact with, and to do so peacefully without hidden objectives.

Even after having her questions answered with patience, QinFei wasn't exactly sure how to provide them with a sure way to sell the treaty. She suggested many perspectives, but she knew that it wasn't as strong enough to be convincing, so she decided to put her mind into it for the next few days.

Staying with the alien wasn't so different as sleepovers with the kids. They were wild and unrestrained, but fun. The only subdued ones are QiuNiu and BaXia. QiuNiu were very interested in the musical instruments of the earth, so Chang QinFei talked about the ones she had taken beginner classes on, like the piano, the guqin, the violin, and the drums. Although the drum was something that her downtown friend used to teach her when they were in middle school. Ai, good old days, ah!

BaXia politely listen in from time to time, but often, as Chang QinFei notices, he would let PuLao use him as portable playground. PuLao was the most excitable child. She would shout every time something interacts with her in an unexpected way. No one minded her burst of giggles, as they too, were the cheerful lots.

ChaoFeng, however, seem to disappear sometime during the evening. Not thinking much about it, QinFei figured that he certainly had errands to run. After all, as long as one exist, there was something to do.

***

"So, the benefit we could have is quite a lot, you see. The advancing in various scientific fields, I'm sure, the free traveling across the galaxies, the actual fact that information can be shared and taught without the mind-numbing task of memorizing off text-books. Think about it! We certainly have a lot of out own ideas that we can literally bring to life. See, I learnt all the languages they have, in just, what, 30 minutes? That's a huge step forward for mankind, Mr. Lim, ah!"

The translator sent a word that they would be late, so Chang QinFei acted as temporary translator during the meeting, but she wasn't professional. There was some things she said that had great intention, but it didn't came out that way to Mr. Lim, the current representative of the Vice President. "I see." That was the most of the responses she managed to get out of him.

That is the representative of the Vice President, ah! How can QinFei deal with someone that high up? Chang family may be wealthy, but they are no aristocrat in the family, ah! How to talk to the VP representative? She don't know. But she knows how to coax a cat into letting her pet them, ah! Lamentable!

"Okay, I'll admit, I have no idea how to convey the wonderful message, I am no professional translator, but it should be enough that you can take my words as testimony, ba?"

It was strange sight for a moving mannequin with mismatched limbs to be making human gestures and a horrendous sale pitch-like speech. That was why Mr. Lim did not reply. He had nothing to say. He had to only wait for the big Boss orders and see if the translator could make it in time before the Boss' patience run out.

"Gi—" The door clicked open, sound of high heels clicked on the pristine floors, and a shapely professional-looking lady walked in.

It was Chang QinFei's turn to be speechless. She knows this person, ah!