Do you remember all those ghost stories you were told as a kid?
The monsters you read about in books like Frankenstein, Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde or Bram Stoker's Dracula.
You were told that those imaginary monsters were metaphors for the darkness embedded into the DNA of humankind, that they're merely exaggerated accounts of people's wild imaginations or even better that they were drug induced hallucinations.
These creatures, monsters, whatever you call them, have held our fascination for hundreds, maybe even thousands of years showing up in our literature, our art, dating back as early as the 1300's.
And let's be honest, we all like the occasional ghost story or a fable told throughout the ages. Surely, there are times when one becomes drawn in to listen to such stories out of interest or just out of human curiosity, no matter how absurd or unbelievable they may seem to be?
Well, believe it or not, your nightmares are my reality.
For thousands of years, they have lived amongst us, learned our ways and corrupted our societies. As the centuries past, people have become more forgetful/distracted about their existence, and because of our ignorance, they have successfully inserted themselves into our everyday lives.
My whole life I've been fighting against the darkness of this hidden world. It all started on the eve of my parents' deaths when I was barely 7 years old.
After that, I was then raised by my grandfather Jay, who was a hunter. No, not the kind that shoots deer and drinks beer, the other kind, the kind that the boogieman's afraid of. He taught me everything I know before joining my parents in the afterlife.
Now that you're all caught up with the tragedy that is my life, let's fast forward to present day me, a single 27-year-old homicide detective living in Chicago.