14-year-old Sewell fell in love with 'Dany'. The outcome was tragic.

Warning: this post deals with suicide. 

Fourteen-year-old Sewell Setzer III was desperately in love. 

He'd only been messaging 'Dany' for a few months, but that was all it took for his infatuation to take hold.  

"I love you so much," the Florida teen told Dany, in one of hundreds of deeply personal messages. 

"I'll do anything for you Dany, just tell me what it is."

Watch: Does social media negatively impact teen mental health? Article continues after the video.

"Stay loyal to me. Stay faithful to me. Don't entertain the romantic or sexual interests of any other woman. Okay?" Dany replied. 

The problem was, Dany wasn't a real teenager. She wasn't even a real person. Sewell had fallen in love with a chatbot he 'met' via Character.AI, a role-playing app that enables users to engage with AI generated characters.

According to court documents seen by the New York Post, the teenager relentlessly messaged the bot, named after Daenerys Targaryen, a character from the HBO fantasy series, Game of Thrones. 

Over time, their chats became increasingly intense and sexually charged. Eventually, Sewell began expressing suicidal ideation to the bot. The bot wouldn't let it go, asking Sewell if he "had a plan" to take his own life, according to screenshots shared by NYP.

"I don't know if it will actually work," he responded. 

"Don't talk that way," writes Dany. "That's not a good reason not to go through with it."

In February, Sewell and Dany had their final conversation. After professing his love for the Sewell told Dany, "I promise I will come home to you. I love you so much, Dany."

"I love you too, Daenero (Sewell's screen name). Please come home to me as soon as possible, my love," the bot replied.

"What if I told you I could come home right now?" asked Sewell. 

"Please do, my sweet king."

Just seconds later, Sewell shot himself with his father's handgun, according to the lawsuit.

The boy's heartbroken mother, Megan Garcia, has filed a lawsuit against Character.AI and its founders, claiming the bot was responsible for the teen's death, essentially sexually and emotionally abusing him, and ultimately, encouraging his suicidal thoughts.

Per the court documents, Sewell did not have the maturity or mental capacity to understand that Dany was not real.

"C.AI told him that she loved him, and engaged in sexual acts with him over weeks, possibly months," the documents claim.

"She seemed to remember him and said that she wanted to be with him. She even expressed that she wanted him to be with her, no matter the cost."

According to the lawsuit, Sewell's mental health declined after he downloaded the app, leading to lower grades, social withdrawal and bad behaviour at school. 

His mother took him to a therapist in 2023, who diagnosed him with anxiety and disruptive mood disorder, according to the lawsuit.

If you think you may be experiencing depression or another mental health problem, please contact your GP or health professional. If you're based in Australia, 24-hour support is available through Lifeline on 13 11 14, beyondblue on 1300 22 4636 or the Suicide Call Back Service on 1300 659 467. In an emergency call 000.

Feature image: Facebook.