Remember Me Spain

Chapter 14

As the months crept along I did my best to keep Ales as comfortable as possible. But no matter how hard I tried his health still declined dramatically. Ales constantly looked tired, his skin was paler than usual, he had lost a tremendous amount of weight and he was constantly in pain. It eventually got to the point where he could barely get out of his chair without struggling. Of course, he had made feeble attempts, which made my heart wrench. After much struggle, however, he would eventually give up, exhausted. I would then have to lift him to help him move. Finally, I decided that his suffering had gone on long enough and, with Nathaniel's permission, took him to the hospital, despite his protesting.

So, in the early spring, Nathaniel and I made the arrangements and, in a flash, Ales was taken to New Hwehew General Hospital. Of course, Nathaniel had paid the additional costs for Ales' comfort. He set Ales up with a private room, private doctors and even catered specialized food. There was no doubt in my mind that he would be well taken care of.

Upon Ales' entry, the doctors immediately attached him to machines that flashed and beeped. He looked so small and fragile amongst the towering machines. It was heartbreaking. As he lay silently in his room, Nathaniel made further plans for a memory transfer. I had heard of the process before, and, from what I knew, it was the process of collecting our memories. This technology was established in the late 21st century. It started with the idea of allowing families to revisit their loved ones memories. Once the memories were collected the person would naturally pass away. As a result Colony doctors began to experiment with the process. In its early stages, the technology had been highly flawed. A lot of the times, the doctors lost the memories. However, they finally perfected it by combining magic with technology.

The plan was to collect Ales' memories a week prior to his intended death. For this, Nathaniel had hired an old friend of his, Juno Kamadi, an established Wiccan from the Faerie Colonies. We didn't have to wait long. Within a couple of days, after Ales' check in, she arrived with her husband Dan Kamadi. She didn't say anything when entering the room. Instead, she went straight for Ales and looked him, and his medical record, over. She paused and walked to the hall with Nathaniel. I was sitting in a chair just beside the door and so was able to quietly listen in on their conversation from the room.

"I'm not sure how much I can do for him Nathaniel," she explained. "In his state he should have gone to the hospital a long time ago. Collecting his memories will be a tricky business."

"Don't you think I know that?" Nathaniel whispered harshly. "But whenever someone brought the subject up Ales refused. And you know how stubborn he can be. And it didn't help that he travelled while he was sick. We were lucky to get him into the hospital at all."

Juno sighed and nodded. "I'll do my best Nathaniel."

"That's all I ask for Juno," Nathaniel said.

They returned. Juno gave a smile and walked over to him.

"Good evening Ales. I'm Juno. You may remember me from years ago, when young Mister King, here, decided to change himself."

"Ah yes," He nodded his head slowly. "Dr. Kamadi. Very nice to see you again," Ales replied weakly, shaking her hand warmly.

Juno nodded and smiled in return. "Yes, nice to see you again too." She stood over him and placed a hand on his bed. "In these last few weeks, I'll be your doctor," she explained. "So, how do you feel today?" She asked, taking out a small flashlight from her pocket, shining it into his eyes.

Ales turned away, raising his hand to protect his face, as if the flashlight gave him great pain. "A bit tired today doctor. Other than that I feel quite normal," Ales replied.