He had always been told by his parents of the monsters that came from the dark and fed on the evil in a person's heart. As a child, being told this was near traumatic but it would shape his life forever.
When he was young, he would follow his mama around the house, watching as she did the chores or helping her out when he could. His father was a radio host for their small town and he loved his son. Whenever his father had the chance, he would take his young son to the station to learn all about the business. On the rarest of occasions would he let his son sit and talk on the airwaves - a segment which was oddly loved by many.
When he turned five, his parents told him about the monsters. They told him of monsters with large bodies covered with fur, of creatures with a human face that lured their victims out of their homes with sweet, but poisonous, words. They told him of creatures with green mottled skin that would kill for a scrap of food and of creatures with hooded cloaks that carried scythes of knives and killed any who approached them. Tales of the monsters were told to him each and every day until he remembered them word for word.
Then, it was that night. He remembered the moon being incredibly large and yellow, only a few stars could be seen. He could recognise a faint constellation, but he always lost the name for it. When his small legs brought him to the large, open window in his parents room, he could make out a faint light in the distance. He wouldn't have any idea it was a fire until he was older.
Too suddenly, figures rushed past his window, dark and bulky. Then one figure stopped and looked at him. He remembered the yellowing teeth as it grinned, and an oversized fist punching through the glass. He ducked and rolled, ending up under his parents bed, crying and trying to be silent as the figure stepped through the window. Glass crunched under its large feet, then it made its way through the room. It walked around the room, slowly, checking the room thoroughly. He peeked at the creature from under the bed but couldn't make out any distinct features.
Then the face was there, staring with eyes full of amused malice. It spoke something in a strange tongue, then the large hand grasped him around the neck, pulling him out from under the bed. He cried, begging for his parents to rescue him.
There was a banging sound, and his parents were there, dressed in black outfits and with strange weapons in their hands. He was dropped to the floor as his parents fought with the monster, his mother yelling for him to get out. The monster fought back, but the fight was over too soon. The monster had a hand around each of his parents' throats and soon, they fell from the monsters grasp, limp and glassy eyed.
Tears welled up in his eyes when he slowly understood what happened to them and why they weren't moving. He was paralyzed, body trembling, silently begging that his parents were pretending, that they would stand up.
He was met with the face of the monster again, his small body taken into the creatures giant fist. He wept, crying out for his parents, barely taking notice of the maws that grew larger as he got closer. He finally turned his head to stare into the black, inky depths of the monsters throat, breath that smelled foul and teeth a disgusting yellow.
Then, his approach to his death was stopped, the monsters mouth slamming shut dangerously close to his face. His body began to fall as the monster fell, his small body cushiobed from injury in the creatures grip. He struggled to pull himself out and crawled to his parents, clutching to them as he wailed.
Footsteps approached from behind him and kneeled down next to him to inspect his parents bodies. They picked up his father and stood back up, glancing down at him.
"You're their child, aren't you?" They asked. The voice sounded female.
He nodded timidly, sniffing and reaching for his father.
The person let out a sigh then quickly scooped him up so he held onto her back.
"Make sure you hold on tight and don't make too much noise. We'll go say goodbye to your parents."
He stared at his fathers face as the woman moved across the room and out the hole where the window once was, not noticing her long strides that moved them inhumanly fast. His fathers face was pale, eyes wide in what might have once been panic.
Then, they stopped, the woman putting them both down before disappearing again, reappearing moments later with his mother. He looked around, noticing they were in the local cemetery, and watched what the woman did while he seemed frozen to the ground. She made a hand gesture then a massive hole appeared in the ground, his parents bodies then floating down into the hole to rest peacefully, eyes closed and hands by their sides.
He watched what the woman did, conflicted over how amazing she was to make his parents float, and saddened by his parents now being at the bottom of the grave. Another hand gesture and the hole was filled in with dirt, a layer of grass sprouting on top.
The woman picked him up and held him so he could see where their grave was. She made a final gesture and he watched as a massive tree grew up from nothing. The tree was healthy and strong, its leaves almost seemed like gemstones with how shiny they were.
"Time for us to go," she announced and started heading off.
He wriggled around a bit, catching a last glance at the tree as the scenery faded and turned into something he had never seen before. It reminded him of those stories his mother told him, of where the fairies were said to live. He was in forest with small houses made of sticks, leaves and all sorts of other materials. He watched with wide eyes as people danced around mushrooms, singing songs and welcoming the woman back in a strange language. They were quick to bring out plates of food and off them to him and the woman. He grabbed some of the fruit offered and sat down, eating quietly. As he watched, he noticed that these people that sang and danced trailed sparkles and a few even had wings that glimmered in the moonlight as they flew around.
The woman soon took him again, taking him into one of the houses and put him to bed.
"I'm sorry about your parents. They were great people who did amazing things for those they loved. They always told me about you, especially your mother."
He hid further down in the blanket, and peeked his head out to look at the woman. She stared into the lit hearth with a sad look, her golden hair catching the light of the flames.
"Who are you?" He managed to ask in a small voice.
She went thoughtful for a moment as she stared down at him, silently evaluating him. Her lips twisted up in a small smile as she bent down and whispered something in his ear. She leant back up with a curious look in his direction.
"Only call me that name if your in danger or if your desperate," she said, a hand reaching out to smooth his hair back. "In front of others, you can just call me Renee Daeth."
With wide eyes, he nodded. She smiled and watched a young Greg settle in for the night.
