19: Overwork (Open Video, Locked Video, Action at Sycamore Cycles in Genessia)

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19: Overwork (Open Video, Locked Video, Action at Sycamore Cycles in Genessia)

A. Sycamore Cycles, Garage Area

[ Adela seems to be putting all of her efforts into a new project. She doesn't seem too happy to do it, but honestly losing herself in deep focus for it is more therapeutic than anything for her.

On closer inspection, it seems like she's working on a metal leg, with the skeleton frame and wiring for an arm set off to the side. The leg seems much closer to completion, and it's after testing some wires for a reaction in the toes of the foot that she leans back and stretches. It might be time to take a break… Maybe to advertise? Sure, that's good enough for a break.

Or at least she thinks it is, but perhaps another sort of interruption will cause that break to extend longer than she'd like. ]

B. Video, Public

[ When the feed clicks on, Adela takes a moment to brush her hair out of her face. To those who know her, they might notice that she looks a little more tired than usual, though she doesn't seem to let it bother or distract her from what she has to say. ]

Hello, everyone.

I understand this may be a service offered in Nova City, but I still feel I should make it known; to any of you with metal prosthetics, if you are concerned with colder weather approaching, I have a metal alloy with a high percentage of carbon fibre. That makes it light and, more importantly, resistant to the cold. If you need your prosthetics outfitted, please contact me over the network as soon as you can. We can discuss how long it will take and a price then, if you are interested.

C. Video, Locked to Yang Xiao Long

I am working on your new arm for winter Miss Yang, but I wished to ask this before I get too far; do you want an entirely new arm? I could instead replace the plating and coverings on your current one to let it resist cold weather, and change it back to iron come spring.

Threaded | Top-Level Comments Only

So you work with metal prosthetics? Have you ever fixed a advanced machine before?

Edited 2016-11-07 22:28 (UTC)

... It depends on the machine.

I have begun to learn more with engineering and currently work with motorcycles as a profession, and automail is the specific type of prosthetic I can build from scratch -- though I understand if you have not heard the term before.

I would not say I could work with anything like computers right now, if that gives you some idea of what I can and cannot do.

No... I mean.. not a computer..

I'm a terminator, a cyborg covered with human skin.

[ She raises a brow, not quite sure of what he's trying to tell her. ]

... A robot?

... Do you really know that many people with missing limbs?

Well, no. I know exactly one aside from myself, but how else am I supposed to let those who I am not acquainted with know?

[ Hm... Oh, she remembers him. It's been a while, but now she remembers who this guy is. ]

[ He shrugs, flopping back against the couch in his apartment. ]

Just seems like a strange PSA, but I guess you're just the altruistic type.

If it were truly altruistic, I would be doing it for free. Business is still a part of it, and as much as I would like to do it for free, I am not quite that charitable.

[ She looks away from the camera then, picking up a screwdriver and examining something in front of her. It's off screen for the moment, so who knows what it is. ]

That being said, it is better for people to be aware than not. If the prosthetic happens to be like mine, the risk of frostbite is very real when it becomes too cold. Better to let people know there is an option aside from simply staying inside one place all winter.

Edited (HTML fail sob) 2016-11-09 03:21 (UTC)

You would think whoever made the things in the first place would have accounted for that.

[ Another half-shrug as he sprawls out, one hand behind his head, the other holding the device up above him to keep himself in frame. ]

Buuuut maybe more people lose limbs where I'm from than in most places. It's pretty far from unheard of.

... I would not know. Such technology did not exist in my home -- I learned it here.

[ A sigh and she shakes her head, turning to the camera briefly. ]

I had not known you were so keenly interested in such things, Mercury.

Like I said - it happens pretty often. I could rattle a dozen names off the top of my head of people missing one limb or another.

[ He crosses one leg over the other, his own prosthetics disguised as per usual. Still a secret even after all this time. ]

Must be a hassle.

It can be. The rain is terrible to deal with now, and I have to be cautious if it is too hot or cold. Still... It is far preferable to not being able to walk at all.

[ Conveniently going to leave out the part where it hurts like a bitch to connect the leg, because it's really almost a non issue for her.

She's also not going to ask how Mercury knows -- it's pretty easy to guess, and especially with recent events, she'd rather not bring it up at all if possible. ]

Of course, it might not be the same for others. Theirs may work differently, thus the upgrades I would do would mainly just alter the plating to make it less prone to cold.

[ He hadn't even meant her, specifically - just that it must be a hassle for any such person in general. Not that he hadn't figured it out; he'd seen the footage back when Battler spread it over the network, had kept his eyes and ears open since then, and the fact that she's talking about prosthetics in the first place is pretty incriminating.

He's regrettably sharper than he acts, sometimes. ]

Any firepower built into yours? I've heard they can weaponize those things.

[ Why does everyone ask that. Her expression falls into a frown, and she rests her chin in her palm as she answers. ]

Not at this time. I was more preoccupied with making certain the one I made was in good working order over it having any weaponized usage, and I have more to learn before I can make a change like that to it.

Oooh, that's too bad! You could really get the most out of 'em that way. Heck, I've considered getting an arm lopped off just to have a shotgun in my wrist.

[ He raises his free hand in front of his face, flexing and relaxing his fingers once with a crooked grin. ]

Always good to have an ace.

... Well, if one were that into fighting, I suppose I should not judge too harshly... But if it were me, I think I would prefer to keep my real hands.

[ She shakes her head, though a wry smile does pull at her lips. ]

And if you wanted your hand weaponized, would it not be better to keep bullets stored in the arm itself and have the bullets come out of each of the fingers? You would get a lot more use out of it that way.

This is my fantasy murder-arm we're talking about, not yours. Keep your practicality to yourself.

[ He draws his fingers into a fist and bends his wrist forward, making the noise of a gunshot with his lips before letting his arm flop back onto the couch at his side. ]

Besides, that sounds way harder to make functional.

That just makes it more fun of a project, if there was a need for it.

[ Shrug. Well, it's not like there's a need, and as much fun as designing weapons is... She's starting to wonder if she has a poor nature for ever using them. ]

Of course, that is only if there is a need for it. Making something so destructive needlessly is just asking for trouble.

I disagree.

[ He lifts a finger, as if reciting something very wise and profound. ]

It's always better to have a weapon and not need it, than to need a weapon and not have it.

So you say, but it also makes it easier for those very weapons to fall into the hands of those who would bring harm simply for their own sake.

[ She sighs, frowning at Mercury again. She's probably going to end up in another argument, but she's a bit more ready for it this time. ]

I am well-armed enough, and I would not begrudge those who wish to arm themselves, but... As fun as it is to imagine what I could create, there is such a thing as too much.

People who want to hurt people are going to make those weapons anyway. People who want those weapons are going to get them, whether the good guys like it or not.

[ There's a gleam in his eye, something of a challenge - as if he's simply playing the devil's advocate to see what she'll say. ]

Isn't it better to at least start with the upper hand?

... It would be better if people did not wish to bring harm at all.

[ She frowns, slumping across the desk then. The communicator falls sideways, showing that she was working on a new leg in front of her. When Adela notices it she corrects it, seeming a little annoyed at the communicator. ]

Of course people need the means to defend themselves and others, but not everyone would use such tools in such a way. It feels foolish to admit this, but I have no way of knowing who will be using what I create for what purpose before they act, and it feels like there is no true right answer to that question for that reason.

It'd be swell if wishful thinking meant a thing, but reality is reality.

[ There's an arch of his brow at the sight, taking the moment to study its design - but for now the topic at hand takes precedence. ]

All I'm saying is this - as someone who grew up in a rough part of town, I slept more soundly when I was armed and ready than when I was defenseless.

I feel very much the same way now.

[ More than likely Mercury doesn't need to ask why, and she seems more thoughtful than anything else. ]

... Even moreso with people I know I can trust in the area, if I am being honest.

Sure, sure. Gotta have someone to watch your back.

[ It's why he keeps Emerald around, after all.

...

That and nothing else ]

But a shotgun-hand couldn't hurt. Or, actually, I guess technically speaking it should hurt!

Perhaps, but it is not worth cutting off my own hand simply to install one. At least, not to me.

Well, you could just go ahead and put guns in your feet instead. Already lost one of those, right?

I am not surprised you know of that, but yes.

It will be something to considered. I am satisfied with a sword for now however, and I am more worried for the cold than I am for not having a gun of some sort.

Has someone already made a joke about getting cold feet, or would I be the first?

... Carbon fibre? Like, something made from the remnants of burnt wood or something?

[Pidonus blinks a time or two. Clearly, she doesn't pay nearly much attention to technology. Perhaps no surprise, given the world she's from.]

[ The comment prompts a chuckle from her, and she shakes her head. ]

I and others have made reference to a lead foot before, but I would say cold is a new way of putting it.

I do not think so. It is still a metallic ore, but with those elements incorporated it becomes more resistant to cold and therefore is less prone to causing pain and lowers the risk of frostbite.

... Wouldn't it be easier to enchant the items with endure elements?

[No - Endure Elements would be a lot more expensive than carbon fibre, the mun did the math.]

What?

[ Adela seems a little surprised with that, looking at the camera with a raised brow. ]

It is as simple as enchanting it? But... Who would offer such a service, and where?

I... Think so? You'd need someone with the appropriate training. I thought there'd be an equivalent on other worlds, but maybe not...

It also cost, I want to say close to two hundred platinum? So it wasn't cheap. But if this carbon fiber's a special material, I'd assume it wasn't cheap either, so...

It is probably cheaper than you might think, but I cannot say for certain -- I do not know what "platinum" would translate to in redbills, but the material I use is not the most difficult to obtain or work with. The real drawback is that it is less durable and less heavy than normal automail, which is fine if you do not wish to fight with it but...

Lemme try to do the math...

[... Pidonus blinks a couple of times, as some muffled taps can be heard.]

... Huh. It is cheaper. Less heavy could be a good thing for certain kinds of fighter, if it's still tough enough to take a solid strike from say a troll's club without breaking.

It can be pretty tough in the right hands, though I cannot say whether or not it would be able to stand that... Honestly if it were for fighting I would probably make a weaponized version regardless.

Hm. Fair enough; I guess a prosthetic limb need not just be a replacement for the functionality of the lost limb.

[Pidonus obviously literally never thought of that before now.]

No, but I would rather have kept my real leg if possible, as I am sure many others would have.

I'd think most people would, honestly. The kind of pain that would occur from that...

... I am aware of it. More than you know.

[Pidonus just. Nodded. Hint taken, no need to say more.]

I...

... Do not trouble yourself over what I have said, I have more than adjusted by now. I simply thought that if I was having this sort of trouble and can do something about it, I should offer the same service to others.

A very kind plan, even if it is as a business.

It is kind of you to say so, thank you.

And the best of luck to you in your work.

I thank you for that. Until next time then, Pidonus?

And the same to you, Adela.

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19: Overwork (Open Video, Locked Video, Action at Sycamore Cycles in Genessia)

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-assumes they introduced their names at some point, doesn't wanna look back lalala-

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