Damian pressed the doorbell once and waited, but the house was completely silent.
Press it again.
However, no matter how long he waited, no sign of life appeared inside.
Wondering if no one was home, Damian tried to turn the doorknob.
The door was open.
He hesitated, then saw the lights on inside, so he took one step inside and took a look around.
One wall was filled with many prosthetic arms and legs.
It seemed like he had come to the right place.
Damian raised his voice slightly.
“Excuse me, is there anyone here?”
Again, there was no response.
But Damian felt that there was someone inside and didn't want to leave empty-handed, so he shouted louder.
“Is there anyone here?!”
Then he heard the sound of something collapsing upstairs, followed by a loud crash that shook the ceiling.
Then he heard the floorboards creak indicating someone was approaching, and soon he heard footsteps coming down the stairs.
The person who came down pointed at Damian accusingly.
"Hey!
If there's no response after the doorbell rings, then you have to leave!
Why did you have to scream and wake me up?!"
It was a man in his early thirties, and his face looked a little annoyed.
He had dark circles under his eyes behind his square glasses, and his long gray hair was tied up haphazardly.
“Ah, damn...
I finally slept after three days of working through the night, and then some idiot comes and...”
Ignoring the man's anger, Damian first confirmed whether he had come to the right place.
“Are you Asher Olun?”
"Yes!
I'm Asher Olun, so what?!"
Even though he rudely woke up the landlord, Damian spoke politely.
"Hello, my name is Damian Stearns.
Major Paul Jeska referred me to inquire about the possibility of obtaining a prosthetic arm."
“An artificial arm?”
Asher's gaze naturally fell on Damian's right arm.
He grunted and turned on the lights in the workshop.
With the lights on, the workshop was a spectacle.
Damian had never seen such a messy room in his life.
The floor was full of various parts and all kinds of rubbish.
"Come in."
With Asher's permission, Damian carefully stepped inside, careful of where he would place his feet.
But while Damian was careful, Asher simply randomly kicked aside the objects on the ground.
Asher pointed from the side of the table in the middle of the room, and Damian approached him and motioned for him to sit on a chair.
"Let me see."
Damian took off his coat, unbuttoned his shirt, revealing the right upper part of his body.
Asher did not even shudder at the sight of Damian's body covered in stitches and scars.
He examined Damian's right arm and asked in a casual tone,
“How did this happen?”
“I was hit by a grenade.”
"Oh, my God".
There was not an ounce of sympathy in his voice.
He didn't ask any more questions or stare at Damian like a ghost, like the others did.
Damian found that strangely comforting.
Although Asher was speaking frankly and casually with an angry face.
After examining Damian's arm, Asher placed his hands on his hips and said,
“What do you want?”
"What do I want...?
I just came to get a prosthetic right arm."
Asher clicked his tongue in disapproval.
“I mean, what kind of function do you want in your prosthetic?”
“Only one thing allows me to go on with my daily life.”
Asher shook his head at Damian's words.
"That's why the general public... there are so many prosthetics that enable them to go about their daily lives.
But even within these prosthetics, there is tremendous diversity."
Asher selected some prosthetic arms from those lined up on the wall.
"This prosthetic looks just like an arm.
It's called a cosmetic prosthesis, and it hides the fact that you're missing an arm.
It can't move or anything."
Damian took it and weighed it in his hand.
It looked like a real human arm, complete with textured skin, but it was as solid as a plank.
"This active prosthetic model can perform simple joint movements.
In your case, where the amputation does not extend to the upper arm, we can attach the artificial joint mechanism to the remaining upper arm muscles.
I'm not sure what you mean by 'daily life', but while simple tasks are possible, there are limitations to its functionality otherwise."
Asher moved the prosthesis back and forth, and the prosthetic wrist moved loosely.
As Damian examined and touched the prosthetic, Asher pulled out another prosthetic.
"But since you came to me, I assume you want something a little more advanced than that...
Are you looking for a prosthetic at the level of a robotic prosthesis or higher?
I can also make prosthetics with surface or internal electrodes."
“Automatic artificial level...?”
Damian tilted his head in confusion, and Asher scratched his head.
“You know, if you're planning to buy a prosthetic, you should do some research beforehand.”
Asher sighed and continued.
“When we send signals to our muscles, electrodes are generated from the nerves.
Surface electrodes refer to the nerve signals flowing on the surface of the muscles.
Prosthetic arms that use this principle receive electrical signals through devices attached to the skin and send signals to the prosthetic to move.”
Asher paused briefly to see if Damian was following his explanation.
“Prosthetics using internal electrodes conduct nerves directly from within the muscle, not just from the surface.
Any prosthetic limb requires rehabilitation training to use it correctly, but prosthetics with internal electrodes allow for more precise movements.
They are what we might call ‘cybernetic arms’.
They require surgery and a longer rehabilitation period, but are often used for military purposes.”
"Understood".
“So which one do you want?”
“Is a device with internal electrodes better?”
'Well, the best type of prosthesis varies depending on a person's lifestyle...but technically, an automatic prosthesis with an internal electrode is the best because it is the most similar to a real arm...no, it even has better mobility and comfort than a real arm.'
“How much does it cost?”
'It depends on the options, but usually it starts from three hundred thousand herek.'
Hearing Asher's words, Damian's face hardened, which was rare.
Excluding luxury goods, the average monthly cost of living for the average citizen was about two thousand herek.
Damian didn't have enough money to pay ten years of living expenses at once.
When Asher saw that Damian was upset by the high price, he fitted a cosmetic prosthesis on his arm and said,
"Automatic prosthetics require surgical attachment, but active prosthetics like this can be attached easily.
Try them out for the test."
Before he knew it, Damian was wearing the prosthetic and moving his joints as Asher instructed him.
"Oh, you're fine.
You'll quickly adapt to the other prosthetics as well."
“Um...
I don't think I need a prosthetic with internal electrodes.
So...”
“Oh, do you want the surface electrode type?”
“How much is this?”
“It's much cheaper than the type that relies on internal electrodes.
They usually start at two hundred thousand Hercs.”
Damian almost coughed up blood.
When he saw his expression, Asher said sympathetically:
"Don't have enough money?
It's objectively expensive, but definitely worth the price."
“It's just...”
"If you don't have money, the prosthetic you're wearing now isn't bad either.
If you just want to use it for daily life and not for any strenuous tasks."
“So, the price for this is...”
“Fifty thousand hercs.
Much cheaper than the others, isn’t it?”
Damian's hands shook as he gently removed the prosthetic... no, the prosthetic, from his arm.
“Sorry, but is this price range normal for other prosthetics companies?”
"no".