"Your city is most extraordinary." Although they gave no indication of understanding her, the three females titled their heads at her in acknowledgement. She wasn't exaggerating with her statement. Despite their tribal clothing and seemingly naïve curiosity, the natives' central city was populated with towering structures that glowed with a soft white energy (not unlike Aya's own hardlight flesh), inhabitants making their way down streets with numerous tech devices, and vehicles that operated by counteracting the planet's natural gravitational force so that they glided without a sound. Whatever Aya had been expecting, it certainly wasn't this level of sophistication and technology.
She was led to a small dwelling away from the relative bustle of the busier streets. One female stepped through the doorway first, the other two remaining behind and gesturing for Aya to follow. It appeared to be the first female's home, judging by the personal décor, the comfort and familiarity with which the female moved around the furnishings, and the "lived-in" atmosphere. She disappeared into the back of the house while the others gently urged Aya to a room where a large basin sat beneath a skylight. She watched with rapt fascination as the basin began to fill with water from the bottom rather than from the top. Her inspection was interrupted when slender fingers attempted to pry off her metal components.
"What are you doing?" The smaller of the two pointed at her chest piece then made a separating motion with her hands. "You wish to remove my casings. Why?" They both made the gesture again, trying next for the metal cylinders of her arms. "You cannot remove them. They are a part of me." She saw that they did not understand, so she showed them. She bent one arm and scratched at the edge of the gauntlet where hard metal met with only slightly softer hardlight. The females leaned closer to observe, then moved back with a single nod. They must have understood since they did not attempt to take off the casings again.
Instead, they each took a cloth and gestured for Aya to get into the now-full basin. Although liquid was normally a death sentence for anything comprised of wires and circuitry, Aya was no primitive machine. She stepped over the rim and submerged herself to the shoulders, silently thanking her foresight to create a waterproof "skin" when she'd first created her physical form. The females stood by the tub and began to wipe away the thin layer of grime that had accumulated on her body after the last misadventure she and her teammates had endured. They were exceedingly gentle, yet there was strength and firmness in their hands; she theorized that if she were an organic being the experience would have felt…nice.
"Please explain," she said when they led her out of the water and dried her. "What is the purpose of all of this?" They titled their heads at her. Recalling what Green Lantern Hal usually did in situations where he did not understand something, Aya spread her arms in front of the tub then down her body before shrugging. The taller female seemed to understand; she stepped forward and pulled a long sleeve up to reveal intricate designs painted on her purple skin. Sparkling black swirls and dots and gentle curves decorated her skin from wrist to elbow; she revealed similar markings on her lower legs as well. The shorter one, after catching on, was eager to show off her own designs, hers a pale green instead of black and only covered her wrist and ankles. "Are these markings indicative of societal standing, or of some other form of recognition?" Another synchronized head tilt was her only answer. "Sigh."
The third female returned, a small bowl and several thin brushes in hand, as the other two wrapped a length of cloth over Aya's body in an intricate drape. Aya observed with no small amount of wonder as the fabric's color shifted until it nearly matched the color of her robotic components; where her casings were a solid white, the fabric became almost opalescent, shimmering in the dimming sunlight. Small details along the edges appeared in tiny swirls of green and red, all without any kind of external control. "Fascinating," she whispered sincerely.
Their task complete, the two that had bathed and dressed her stepped aside to a small table where the bowl and brushes now sat. The other, presumably a superior to them based on her more extensive markings up her arms and neck and the way the others deferred to her in respect, looked Aya over in appraisal. She adjusted various places where the way the cloth laid did not suit her taste. Aya remained still and quiet during this inspection, recording and compiling every minute movement and sound for later analysis. When she was satisfied, the leader took her hand and sat her down on a small stool where the others waited.
Without another moment wasted, the women each took a brush and dipped them into the white substance, now glowing softly in the dimming light, in the bowl. Seeing Aya's confusion, the superior lifted her sleeve and gestured to the gold designs that twisted their way up the full length of her arm and onto her long neck. That same hand lightly covered Aya's and traced up to her shoulder. She then pointed to the bowl, then to her brush, then back to the robot's artificial limb. Aya understood: they wanted to paint her with her own designs. Always eager to experience new things, she held out both arms and let them do as they wished.