No one is who they say they are. Scary thought, ain't it? The gray man, the red woman, your father, your mother, you-all embodied by a lie of perfection. Yeah, it's scary, terrifying even, but, let's face it, mankind is accustomed to it-  we are blinded by deception. Our eyes are weak, our eyes are useless, but our hearts- our hearts are our only strength, our only hope to peel back the cover and reveal the ugly beauty of mankind.

I know, I know, why listen to me? Why trust anyone after hearing that deception of mankind? But what if I told you I was not part of the mankind you know? What if I was one of the few that had escaped...escaped from the horrors of falsity and fraudulence? Would you believe me then?

The answer: probably not.

You are still a part of your diseased mankind. You don't trust me, you would never trust me. Not with the scar among my brow and the darkness in my eyes. No, trust is far from what you are thinking. You think I'm the problem, I'm the reason that your mankind is sinking beneath the choppy waves.  You think I know nothing of the truth.

But that's where you are wrong.

I have seen it all. I was there. And yet, you still shake your head in disbelief. No one is who they say they are, you say. Yes, that is true. But not everyone is truthful. Would you believe me if I told you I survived the collapse through pathological lying? Or would you consider that a lie too? That is what you must consider to be your world, reader. Everyone, no child, no man, no woman is left untouched, by the mask of lies your world basks in. You, yourself, have been plagued by the chicanery far too long to realize that there are others out there. Others that have more than just eyes. Others just like me.

They used to call me Jap. I was only a child back then, very young, very innocent, but still diseased by mankind nonetheless. Back then I was just like you. I still lived with my mum and pa and they loved me dearly. I went to school everyday, did my homework, played with my toys. Everything seemed great except one thing...they called me Jap.

Here's the thing you must understand. From birth I was different, my brain was different, dysfunctional even. I saw little. I knew little. And you shake your head again. Yes, I knew little back then, but I know more now...much more than you will ever know. Unless you listen. Unless you heed my words.

Heed my words, reader.

They used to call me Jap. They used to squint their useless eyes at my damaged ones and laugh. They'd laugh! And they'd call me Jap. But what they didn't understand was, as little as I could see, I saw them. I saw their faces. They are burned into my blind eyes...even today. I know who they are. And they know who they are. They hide behind their masks, their lies, of perfection. They were once made of thin paper, ready to fall, but you know, reader, those masks became stone, concrete. Those who once called me Jap are frozen- trapped- by their perfected ploys of innocence and charm.

You know where I am?

Free. There is no rigidity plastering the smile onto my flushed cheeks. There is no tiresome brightness in my eyes. I am free.

I am me.

Yes, I know what you are thinking: I am blind. But remember, reader, I am only blind to this deception that plagues you, you and your kind. I've already seen it all. You've seen none of it. Do you trust me now?

No? Perhaps you need to see less. Close your eyes. Really, go ahead and close your eyes. Are they closed? Yes? Alright, now I want you to lean back in that chair of yours. How does that feel? Relaxing? Are you going to fall asleep? You are? Don't.

Reach forward. Did your hand touch something? How'd it feel? Rough? Smooth? Now open your eyes. I can bet that what you are holding is nothing like you thought it'd be. And all we've done is touched everyday objects, reader.

What if I told you to do this for life? What would you do?

The answer: You'd find that your eyes lie. You'd find yourself creating a world, a brand new world, free of those faulty falsities you've only just discovered. You'd become just like me: Reagan Keyes. You'd become part of a new mankind...an honest mankind.

No one is who they say they are, reader. Do you believe me now?