Chapter Text
St David’s Shopping Centre lay dormant - storefronts shuttered, escalators inactive, lights dimmed. The only movement was the resolute rhythmic flashing of the Christmas lights strung along the balconies, glinting off the fake snow that had been tacked to every available surface. An enormous pine tree, laden with gaudy decorations, towered over the lower floor. At the base of the tree, sat a grotto with a large vacant seat in the centre and two plastic reindeer standing ankle deep in polystyrene balls beside a large, brightly-striped candy cane.
Suddenly, a sound broke the hum of silence. It began with the fizz of a dying firework and grew to the crackle of static. And now, it blazed with light too, weaving glittering trails through the air. A dark form stumbled forward into the deserted atrium.
Your vision comes into focus and you stare around at the bright colours in confusion. What is this strange place? What are these hideous figures with their shiny, glowing faces? You shiver and stretch out your fingers, so cold that your teeth are rattling in your head. You look down to see your dark fingers disappearing into a thick layer of tiny, white balls.
The sensation is like tiny pinpricks of ice on your skin. You scramble to your feet, stumbling backwards over a small wooden fence, scattering the tiny balls over a smooth, shiny floor. The surface shoots bolts of pain up through the soles of your feet as you skid across the unnatural ground.
The air tastes thick and acrid in your throat. Blinking lights from all sides pulse painfully in your eyes and you close them against the onslaught.