Born the youngest of three boys to a police officer and a registered nurse, Alijah had what many might consider a happy childhood. Sure, they had their share of problems that at times caused the foundation of their world to shake, but it never crumbled. There was a part of Alijah that always understood just how well off he was. He saw it from the other children at school. The way they showed up unkempt, and even if they did appeared respectable there was a haunted look within their eyes. He often asked his parents about it, and they would always tell him the same thing "Some had forgotten what family means." Those words only provided a small insight to what was going on with these other children, but not enough for him to full grasp the horrors they were going through. Still, Alijah decided to do what he could to help those less fortunate than he was. He often packed extra supplies within his bag to give to classmates who were clearly doing without, and for those who appeared well-groomed but with haunted eyes he tried to be a source of kindness.

It wasn't until after he met the love of his life--a transfer student from another parish named Liam-- that he fully comprehended his parents words. There were no romantic feelings on either side during the beginning. They were nothing more than lab partner in freshman chemistry, but from that their relationship bloomed. At first, Liam was reserved, speaking of only class related matter, but over time Alijah would pry a little more personal information from him. Even than it was only the basic--information that he could find within the school records. Although Liam was tight-lipped about his home life, a general friendship developed between the two of them--one that made them inseparable.  Eventually Liam became a constant figure within the Naess house. He was there often enough that it was joked that the Naess's had four sons instead of three. Liam's reaction towards these jokes never escaped Alijah's notice. He would flinch as if he had been slapped.

Alijah questioned Liam about it, and even suggested that they go over to his house instead, but like any of the previous times he made a similar suggestion Liam shut him down. However, unlike the other times Alijah did not accept his refusal. He pressed Liam to tell him why he didn't wish for Alijah to meet his family or see his house. This lead to a huge fight that made him certain ended their friendship. The two didn't speak for nearly a month, each passing the other in the halls at school with barely a glance. It was only happenstance on Alijah's mother part that the reason behind Liam's reaction to the joke became clear. It had nothing to do with being upset about being considered apart of the of Naess family, but instead because Liam identified  as  she not  he. Neither went into detail about how Alijah's mother discovered this secret nor did either wish for him to discover it by walking in on them dolling each other up in the living room one sunny afternoon.

Afraid of Alijah's potential reaction, Liam began to shrink back but Alijah's mother stopped him by explaining to Alijah exactly what was going on. The only thing Alijah asked after hearing this explanation  was "Do you still want to be called Liam, or would you much prefer Lia?" because it didn't matter if his best friend was a he or a she. Upon hearing those words, his best friend began to cry tears of joy and said "Anastasia. I want to be called Anastasia, or Ana for short" It was within that moment Liam became Ana, and even if it was just within the Naess house jokes about them having a daughter and three sons ran rampant. Alijah's mother was especially happy about this new development. She had always wanted a daughter, but after the difficulty she had with Alijah's pregnancy and birth it was decided she shouldn't try for another child. She saw Ana as the chance to gain the daughter she had always dreamed of having, and was more than happy to teach Ana everything one needed to know about being a woman. 

Since discovering Ana's truth, Alijah had met her parents a number of times, and although they would invent him over many times he still never went to Ana's house. It was through these interactions that he learned Ana's family was rich. Her family was old money.  It was the summer before their senior year that Alijah came to learn of the horrors that Ana's had been subjugated to by her parents hands. Naked as the day she was born, Ana came rushing up the Naess's drive way bloody and battered. Immediately Alijah inquired what had happened. This wasn't the first time she came over beaten up, but it was certainly the worse. He expected Ana to tell him nothing, or to stumble over a story they both knew weren't true, but Alijah wouldn't pry out of her despite his best efforts. This time the truth came tumbling out of her. Ana revealed that it was her parents who had done this to her. Mostly her father. Although, her mother was not innocent, but she mostly watched rather than engage. 

They were not happy with Ana's chosen identity. They had known since she  was a child that she was different from other boys--a fact that displeased them to say the least. Over the years they had tried to beat and torture the queerness out of her, but to no avail. That day they had return early from some trip to find Ana dressed as a woman. It was the first time they had seen her within such attire, and her father outraged began to beat her relentlessly, but things took a turn it haven't before. Her father deciding that if Ana wanted to be a woman she better learn how to please men like one, and he took her right then and there. The entire time her mother not only watched, but provided Ana advise on how to perform her duty as a woman. Each word Ana spoke of what had transpired sparked a rage within Alijah that he didn't know he was capable of holding, and before he knew it he was making his way over to her estate.

Although, he never been inside he had been by it enough times to know its location. Ana terrified of what her father might to do to Alijah if he confronted him rushed into the Naess's house to inform his family what had just happened. Only Alijah's father was home at the time. His mother had decided to go out to dinner with some friends, and his two older brothers while they were over often enough had their own place. Upon hearing what Ana had to say about what had just occurred, Alijah's father leapt into action and with Ana in tow, headed over to her house. They came just in time to see the after math of that confrontation, but it didn't go into the direction that Ana feared. Instead it lead to Alijah brutally murdering her parents. Alijah hadn't meant to do it. He had gone over to confront them not kill them, but during the conversation they had said something that enraged him to no end and the next thing he knew they were dead upon the ground.

Both Ana and Alijah's father looked  horrified upon the scene, but his father recovered quicker. He knew what awaited Alijah if this crime was discovered and he moved to cover it up. He told Alijah to take all his clothes off, leave them in a pile upon the ground and return home with Ana. If anyone inquires what happened to Ana's parents they will tell them that they decided to move overseas somewhere. The walk home was a long one, but during that time Ana regained control of her senses and revealed the reason behind her horror upon seeing what had transpired, She like Alijah's father had been terrified of what would happen to Alijah if it was discovered what he had done, but more than that she was horrified of her own reaction upon seeing her parents dead. She had been overjoyed, and more than a little disappointed that she had not been there to witness it. The last thing she told him before they fell into a silence that lasted the rest of the way home was she always knew he had her back, but she never realized until that moment how far he would go for her.

Things changed between them. Their once platonic friendship turned romantic. Each contributed what Alijah had done to Ana's parents as the turning point. They tried to inquire from Alijah's father how he had handled the situation, but he told them not to worry about it. They tried to push it out of their minds, but that was easier said than done--especially for Ana. It wasn't that she didn't trust Alijah's father to do as he said. She knew the patriarch of the Naess house was a man of his word, but she also knew that secrets in spite your best effort don't always stay buried. There were times she swore that someone knew. Worse yet was her fear that her parents weren't dead, or that they were going to raise from the grave. Many times Alijah suggested they moved far away, but she rejected his offer as she believed he was as much apart of Louisiana as the bayous. She couldn't ask him to tear his own soul out for her.

Eventually he convinced her that moving away from Louisiana would not tear his soul out, and that if he every felt a overwhelming longing for home he would not hesitate to share it with her. That night they decided to pack up their belongings and just drive until they found someplace that just felt right. They ended up staying in New Mexico after falling in love with the desert there, and they were stay there for a time. It soon became clear that they were not meant to stay within one place for long, Ana had a wanderlust and desire to see the world and Alijah was more than happy to go with her. They were eventually married and Ana fully transition into a woman. Their journey went from places easily found to more remote places, and within these isolated locations they encountered things with more otherworldly nature. Most of the time these encounters were bizarre, but not unnerving. It left them with a curiosity for the supernatural and they began to seek out places that are renowned for being hot spots for supernatural activities. 

It was during one of these trips deep within the Appalachian mountains that Alijah's entire world came crashing down around him. He had no idea what they encountered that day nor does he understand in any true capacity what occurred. The only thing he knows for certain was what they encountered that day was nothing like the other supernatural entities that they had stumbled upon. This one left no room for plausible deniability. This one was not a trick of the mind, or something that could potentially be explained away with logic or science. Worse yet, this encountered left Ana deceased and Alijah gravely injured. He woke up a month later within the hospital bed to this horrific news, but he quickly discovered that the ordeal wasn't over. He had been found hundred of miles away from where he claimed the attack took place--too far for anyone to travel within a car; let alone on foot within the time frame he provided.

This wasn't the worse part, but there was no record of his wife existing either under her chosen name or birth name. It was as if she never existed. He became determined to prove she was not a figment of his imagination as well as uncovered the mystery of what happened the day of the attack. Another piece to the puzzle soon revealed itself when he went to sleep. It didn't take him long to realize that upon falling asleep that he always woke up within a world different yet similar to the one he had fallen asleep within. He doesn't dream. At first, he thought he merely doesn't remember his dreams but after waking up enough times in the middle of an activity he has come to suspect that wasn't the case. Both worlds seem equally real to him, and he often feels like he is trapped within that state of uncertainty one can find themselves within when they have too many false wake-ups.

It didn't take him long to discover that supernatural beings like werewolves and vampires actually exist, and he found himself joining an organization whose sole purpose was to defend mankind against these supernatural beings. He didn't join out of a strong sense to protect, but rather because he believed if anyone could help him unravel his mystery it would be them. While he is unsure what had happened. He does know that it had changed him. No, it was changing him as he is still going through the process. It is extremely slow and at times incredibly painful. He doesn't know what he is becoming. He just know that he is no longer human, and he has a hunger within him that has not been sated by the means of the various  supernatural creatures he have encountered. Some part of him was surprised that the organization he was a part of was willing to let him try some of these feeding methods as it meant actively feeding upon those they swore to protect.

They told him that defending mankind did not mean the destruction of the supernatural, and besides he never took his meal from unwilling sources. He suspect, however, they are just as curious about what he is changing into, or worse yet they know and have a morbid fascination with watching it progress. The latter potentially being true leaves him greatly disturbed, but he isn't sure if it it is because it put into question the verity of their mission or the fear of losing his humanity that's speaking. It feels with each passing day more and more of it slips away. Despite relentlessly searching he has not find any evidence of Ana's existence and than one day he received a letter that left him greatly shaken, and not just from what it said but also because it was sent to him in both reality. While sharing similarities the two realities rarely coincided to such a degree.

The letter expressed a mixture of amazement and respect over his continued existence as he should have went the way of his wife. The letter went on to explain that Ana was no more--her soul have been consumed across all possible realities. However, the consumption did not erase her existence entirely. It did not make it so she never existed. If he found no evidence of her existing than that was likely because she never existed within that reality,  or that her life had been so different from the one Alijah knew that he doesn't know what to look for. The letter suggested that it is possible for him to go into other realities besides the two he currently find himself within, and that if he wanted when he found the reality that his beloved had resided within he could will her back into existence. However, this would require him to embrace what he was becoming, and the letter made it perfectly clear that even it did not know what that was as no mortal had survived such an attack, but the decisions Alijah have made and will make since the attack will greatly influence the end result.

While the letter did leave him greatly disturbed he recognized it for potential it held for solving the mystery on what had happened the day of the attack. While it provided many answers to what had happened it left many questions. The letter did not explain what attack them. Only that Ana's soul had been consumed and instead of him suffering the same fate he was transformed. There was, also, the question on who sent this letter and how they came upon this information. Was it someone who had dealing with the monster that attacked Alijah and his wife, and merely wished to help someone who had suffered a horrific tragedy, or even less nobly uncover the mystery Alijah's continued existence presented. Or had the letter been sent by the very monster who attacked them, and its interest within Alijah was more personal. He decided to uncover who wrote the letter because regardless of the truth of their identity. They had valuable information.

So far he haven't gotten any closer to uncovering the identity behind the sender, but it was far from the only letters he was sent. Over times he received many more. Each with valuable information, but not all related to the mystery of what had happened to Alijah and Ana. There were some merely helpful to whatever job he was currently upon, but each one only adds to his suspicion that the sender is the very same monster that attacked him because within the tone of the letter there is a sense of pride and disappointed only reserved for one's progeny and he suspect that the author is near enough to watch. While he has not uncovered his identity within this reality, he is certain he works as an orderly named Markas within the other.

While within the other world the supernatural beings were very much real; within this one they were nothing more than creatures within stories. Alijah still attempted to uncover the mystery behind what happened, but he largely had to do it by himself as most regarded him as insane whenever he mentioned the attack being supernaturally motivated. There was, also, the fact he was extremely volatile. His family who he had returned to stay with after he had been released from the hospital attributed it to PTSD. While they had no recognition of Ana, they did grasp the severity of what he had endure and its impact upon his mental state. They did their best to help him, and he really tried to accept the truth of the world as others told him it was. He told himself the only reason he thought the supernatural existed within this reality was memories of the other was bleeding over. At first, he told himself it was because it was impossible to tell which one was the dream and which one was real, but when it occurred to him both was real. He told himself because he had memories of both existing within his head at the same time he sometimes had difficulties separating one from the other, and often mixed them up.

Yet, try as he might he couldn't help seeing the supernatural when he was told there was none. Worse yet, he could see the malice intent some of these supernatural held and made it his sole mission to protect the innocent against these horrors. It was a decision that ultimately lead him to being sent to a mental institution renown for its ability with dealing with those with violent  tendencies due to psychosis. They try to their best to convince him that the supernatural doesn't exist as well as help him come to terms with what had happened. They believe that the invention of the supernatural is his way of dealing with something too traumatic for his mind to handle. There is no doubt within their mind that he had watched someone die that day, but they aren't certain if that person actual ever existed or just a representation of the piece of himself that he lost that day. At first he attempted to go along with them, but the passage of time made him more certain he was not mistaken--especially not when the letter informing him Ana's soul had been completely consumed and he should have suffered the same fate arrived.

Each letter that he received after that one made him more certain he was not mistaken. He thought about presenting the letters to them, but he realized that they would not see the content like he did. It would be just like they didn't see the supernatural masquerading as various staff members even after Alijah provided them with indisputable evidence. One example of this is an orderly by the name of Markas who every other week seems to present as a different supernatural being, and he swears that the bastards seems to be goading him on purpose. Given how many times he had attacked the man, he would have thought the hospital would have removed him from Alijah's care team. More than that there are  a few times he swore he had killed Markas or at the very least hurt him seriously enough that he shouldn't have returned to work the very next day. Yet, he is always there. Always regarding Alijah with that smug expression of his.

While he had uncovered his suspicion regarding Markas identity within the other reality, within this one he only had this knot of anger whenever he looks upon him that often has him lashing out at him. it is this reaction that makes any attempts he tries to make towards being released hard. It is impossible to make people believe that you are no longer suffering from psychosis when you are trying to kill someone every other week because you are certain they are a monster. It eventually becomes clear why they don't attempt to remove him from his care, and that is because they regard each incarnation of the Markas that works there as different people. In fact, none of them were named Markas. His doctor believes that perhaps the name of his attacker had been Markas, and that each of these orderlies possesses a quality that reminds him of the man who had committed such an horrendous act upon him.