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Chapter 16: Doctor AI

  For a second everyone is speechless, but then the laughter of the AI is heard, making everyone even more confused. “She is not, dear boy; the fact is that this is my space!” The AI says, extending his arms and spinning around. “And as I can speak almost any language, as long as I can download it, and you are here, you hear the translation in Japanese from Galactones!”

  “My head hurts and my eyes are itchy,” says Sakura, tugging at Lee’s sleeve and looking at the TV.

  “That is okay, little one. A bit more to make sure your head is okay, then you can take the helmet off, okay?” The AI asks, and Sakura nods. Then, noticing that Sakura’s head is starting to bob up and down and she is starting to close her eyes, he looks at Lee and says, “Don’t let your sister fall asleep just yet; another minute or two, and it will be over.”

  Lee nods and starts to talk to Sakura to keep her talking.

  Bexy’s voice is heard asking, “I still don’t understand how you got here.”

  The AI looks at Bexy and smiles. “At first, when I got the signal that someone was looking into my research, it spiked my curiosity. Then, as I followed the signal, I was barricaded at the entrance of the framework of this hospital. But I could still see all the information being looked over, so earlier, when you made sure that the firewall and all the safety was online, I stepped into the framework, allowing me access to this test that you were conducting.”

  “Good thing you did!” says Raxen, and once again Lee can understand her in Japanese. “If it wasn’t for your intervention, something worse could have happened to the children.” The AI and Fionna nod; Bexy nods after debating with himself for a second, but he is forced to agree with Raxen's statement. “But I do have one question: you stated that you only came because someone in this hospital network had looked into your master's research. Did you manage to see who it was, or did you get a name?”

  The AI reaches into its pocket and removes a notepad made of pure light, then starts to flicker through the pages; then, once it’s happy with the performance, it points at the notepad. “Right, here it is. I never managed to see exactly who it was, but the digital signature came from the computer of a Doctor K. Jaborian.” He then closes the notepad, making it vanish into particles.

  Sakura, seeing this sparkles, and being under the influence of sleep, starts to laugh. ”That is pretty glitter; is it magic dust?”

  “Doctor AI, I don’t think she will stay awake too long,” Lee says, looking at the AI.

  The AI looks at Lee and starts to wave a finger up and down. “Doctor AI, that has a nice ring to it. But don’t worry; soon you will be able to disconnect and take a nap. I’ll be going now.” As he finishes speaking, a door appears, rising from the ground.

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  “Wait!” says Bexy. “I would like to talk to you some more. How can I be in contact?”

  “You wish to talk to me?” the AI says, looking at Bexy, his hand hovering over the doorknob. “Why? About what?”

  Bexy scratches his head, and the lights start to turn a shade of violet. “First, because I finally came to terms with the fact that you are not a fragment of the children's imagination.” He then lowers his head and says something in a whisper that was almost inaudible.

  “I didn’t quite make out that last bit,” says the AI. Then he waves at the TV and swipes his hand right, and the footage rewinds; then he increases the sound and swats his fingers up. The screen replays Bexy speaking.

  “Fragment of the children's imagination.” The voice of Bexy comes from the TV too loud, making Sakura, who was on the verge of falling asleep, jump and be on the alert. Then Bexy’s voice is heard again, but as he whispered before, the sound comes in a regular volume. “And I would like to speak with you, so I could learn more about the brain and the power of imagination.”

  Hearing this, everyone looks at Bexy, the lights in his head vibrating as they dim up and down in a brilliant pink and reddish colour.

  The AI chuckles. “Just plug a device into the computer and I’ll transfer a copy of my code to it; that way, you will have a copy of me as I travel back to my master's place.”

  Bexy places his phone against the glass wall and another door appears, this one with neon lights spelling "Bexy" over it, almost like the entrance to a night club. The AI shakes its head before making a mirror appear beside himself. A reflection appears in the mirror, then the AI steps back and the reflection steps away from inside the mirror; as he steps out, the mirror vanishes. They both look at the children. “Well, see you next time if fate allows it to do so!” Then each one goes via a door.

  When both doors disappear, the room becomes completely dark with the exception of a floating text saying, 'No Connection. Please remove Helmet.'

  Lee removes his helmet and is turning around to help Sakura, only to find his parents there already.

  “Can Saki sleep now?” Sakura asks, but before anyone has time to reply, her head falls against Kenji’s chest, and she is fast asleep.

  Kenji and Sue look at Lee; he gets up from the ground and is about to take a step forward when his legs buckle under his weight, but before he falls, a hand is against his chest and another on his arm. He feels confused as both his parents are with Sakura. Lee looks down at the hand on his chest and follows it to find Raxen looking at him.

  She smiles and says something; Lee shakes his head and scratches his ear; Raxen speaks again, but Lee still doesn't understand.

  “She is asking if you are feeling okay and if you think you can stand on your own.” Lee turns to the other side and finds Fionna. “But by your face, the ability to understand Galactones never came with you.”

  Lee chuckles then moves a leg in front of himself and tries to stand up, but is still wobbly, so Raxen never lets go completely. “My head hurts, and my legs are weak.”

  Fionna nods, then flashes a light in Lee’s eyes, makes him follow her finger, then finally measures his heart rate and blood pressure. “With Lee, all vitals are stable. He just needs some rest,” Fionna says once finished.

  “Same with the girl; her pupils are responsive to light, and vitals are stable.” When Lee looks at his sister, he finds the other nurse—the one that got them from the room—finishing checking Sakura.

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