Chapter Three
Getting a helping hand... or two

Day Four

Noru looks at the place with awe and a little skepticism. He knew the place wouldn't look luxurious, 
but for a doctor to work out of a shack seemed a little damaging to a person's faith. "This is it?" he 
asks Gally with worry as they walk up to the door.
"Yeah," Gally answers happily. She looks up at Noru and smiles, "Don't worry, he's one of the best 
cyber-docs in the city!"
"Uhm, cyber-doctor?" Noru asks, slightly confused as to the connection.
"Yeah, you're going to need a new arm, now," she tells him as she lets go of his hand and knocks on 
the door loudly, "Hey, Ido, it's Gally!" 
"I'm coming!" Noru hears someone say. The voice is mature and cheerful, not depraved and crazy 
like so many he has heard in the past two days. The door opens inward and Noru is greeted with 
the image of a man in his late forties, his face bright and cheerful. It lifts the young man's spirits to 
see someone like this. "Hi, Gally! I see you've been fighting the odds again," the man says as he 
looks at Gally's damaged arm.
Gally smiles at the comment and shrugs her shoulders. "Just a little scratch."
"I see..." the man says, his voice oozing curiosity. He looks at Noru with interest, rubbing at his jaw 
while he examines the young man's wounds. "Who's this, a new associate of yours?"
"Not really. He's a bounty," Gally replies, almost smiling at the statement.
"Ex-bounty," Noru corrects.
"Not yet," Gally returns. 
"Why have you brought a bou... Uhm, Ex-bounty here?" the man asks, scratching his blonde head. 
"He's not like the others..." Gally trails off. "It's hard to explain, but, I don't want to kill him." 
"Well, if you say so. But... We're going to have a lot of work on our hands. Let's get you to the 
lab." 
"Lab?" Noru asks worriedly. The word somehow triggers a thought. [I was born in a lab... No, I 
was...] his mind goes blank again, another clue lost to him. 
"Oh, it's not like a mad scientist's lab. It's my medical room. That's where all the parts are," the man 
explains, leading Noru into another section of the building. 
Noru looks in amazement at the immense piles of parts and pieces scattered about. "Yeah, Ido has 
all kinds of robot parts in his lab. I bet he's even got enough to build his own!" Gally announces 
wide-eyed and smiling as she follows the man. 
"I wouldn't go that far," the man replies. 
"Well, think you could fix this?" Noru asks, raising his bloody stump to eye-level. 
"It'll take a bit of work, but yes, I can," the man replies. He points to a flat table in the middle of the 
room. "Just lie down on that and we'll get to work." 
Noru does so, lying down carefully, his mind in a half-state of worry. "The last time I was on a 
hospital bed, I was strapped down and some nut wanted to take out my brains." 
"That's not going to happen to you here. Now relax. I'm going to put you to sleep..." the man says. 
Noru can hardly hear the man's voice, however, the wounds have taxed his strength. He slips into 
unconsciousness, where his own worst nightmares have lease. 
Noru was walking through a lush forest. He didn't know how he got there, but somehow, that didn't 
worry him. There were budding trees and flowers coming to blossom along a long and winding 
path he realized he was following. In the distance, he could hear the laughter and songs coming 
from a group of children. His heart leapt with joy as he heard this. The loneliness of the forest 
upset him. He desperately wanted to join in and see the children, or anyone, for that matter. As he 
walked toward the joyous sounds, something began to pull him in another direction. He wasn't sure 
what it was, but he followed the pull until he heard what sounded like a young man crying. He 
stepped out of the forest and into a clearing. 
Within just those few steps, everything changed, and not welcomingly. The flourishing plant life 
was replaced by the dead vines of winter, and snow covered the barren plain where he now stood 
alone. No, he was not alone. A bat-like humanoid lay weeping upon the snow. His body was 
severed just below the ribcage, an arm was missing, and his blood was staining the snow about him. 
Noru was too stunned to scream as he watched the thing. "Please," the creature begged, blood and 
bile streaming from its haggard lips. It was clearly in agony as what remained of its severed body 
struggled on the ground. "Please let me die. Why won't you let me die?" 
Naotaki wakes up screaming.

Day Five
"Are you okay?" a voice asks Noru. The voice is soft and feminine. Familiar and comforting to his 
pain-wracked ears. 
"No," he replies, opening his eyes to look around, focusing on the voice. Gally smiles at him as he 
sees her. He tries to sit up but finds he could not due to restraining leather straps bound to his 
body. "Not again!" 
"Not what again?" Gally asks as she looks at her new friend. 
"Why do I always wake up tied down?" he asks aloud to no one in particular. 
"You struggled in your sleep. Ido thought the restraints would be best. He didn't want you to hurt 
yourself." 
"More than I already am?" Noru returns. 
"Oh, you don't have to worry about that anymore. Ido fixed you up good. Just like he did my arm, 
see?" she tells him as she holds up her new arm for him to see. In truth, he saw the beauty in the 
cold, shaped metal. The intricate wiring coursing cyborg blood through her plastic veins. However, 
he would admit none of this aloud. His mind saw such things as a sign of weakness. "Joy, I'm a 
metal man." 
"Just an arm and a few bits and pieces." 
"Don't worry, I'm just beating myself over the head about it. Not your fault." 
"Actually, it is my fault. I'm the one who took it off, remember?" 
"Oh, yeah. So, when do I get out of this thing?" 
"When Ido gets back. He went to the store for some extra food," Gally explains. She looks at her 
new friend with worry, "Are you doing any better?" 
"A bit. I was having a nightmare. More like a remembrance shaped into a nightmare. I saw a forest, 
and snow, and a body... I can't remember what it looked like." 
"A forest? Snow?" Gally says with surprise, "You aren't from around here, are you?" 
"No. I don't think so," Noru answers solemnly, "This place... this city seems totally new to me. I 
spent hours walking around, and did not find a single familiar sight." 
"It's a big city." 
"Not that big. I've seen much bigger cities..."
"So!" Gally shouted in surprise. "You're starting to remember!" 
"I guess so. Although I don't recall remembering." 
"That's a dumb thing to say." 
"Actually, it kind of makes sense. I keep getting flashes, but lose them just as fast. I remember 
pieces, but the pieces don't fit together." 
"You'll figure it out eventually. I mean, I don't really know who I am. Ido found me about a year 
ago. He rebuilt me and named me Gally. It's not my real name, just a counterfeit." 
"I like 'Gally'. It's simple." 
"Yes, it is..." Gally whispers, brushing her metal fingers against Noru's cheek. Noru feels her cold 
fingers contact his skin and looks up with wonder, "Is something wrong?" he asks. 
"It's just..." she begins haltingly, "I've never met someone like you before. You're so strong, but... 
you have such compassion... You remind me of someone." 
"Who?" "I... Can't remember," she replies sadly. A few stray tears dot along her cheek, which she 
wipes away with her cold metal hands. "I'm sorry... I'll leave." 
"No, don't!" Noru begs. "Please, stay..."
"Why?" "Because... I'm alone here. I need... someone to talk to." 
Gally smiles, not a predatory smile, nor a smile born of lust, but a normal smile, soft and cheerful to 
Noru's eyes. "I'll stay." 
"Let's see how the new arm is doing, shall we?" Ido asks, removing the restraints from Noru's torso. 
"Well, it itches like hell, that's for sure," Noru replies. 
"That sounds about right," Ido laughs, "It's because your skin isn't used to intersecting with metal 
and wiring." 
I'm not too sure of that... Noru thinks to himself. "I think I had an artificial arm once. A long time 
ago." 
"I don't think so," Ido replies, "You don't have any light scarring from a transplant... Ah, there we 
go." 
The cheerful man lifts the sheet covering Noru's right arm, revealing the dull, gunmetal arm that was 
now a part of him. "May I sit up?" Noru asks, "I'd like to try it out." 
"Oh, certainly," Ido answers, backing up. Noru carefully tests out the feel of his new arm and 
presses it against the bed. When he feels no pain, he slowly props himself up, allowing his weight 
to fall on his arms. After a few moments, he is sitting up and examining his arm in fascination. 
"See, I told you it wasn't so bad," he hears a feminine voice speak. He looks up, and sure enough, 
its Gally. 
She's so different from that night. So cheerful now, he wondered. "I suppose you're right," he 
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