Martin Blackwood

There was an effigy to burn, and a Todd Chad concert to suffer through, but the lawn around City Hall was nearly deserted this year.

The place to be was Kagura. Despite reservations, and rumors of disastrous years of the past, the tram was running on a clockwork schedule and the road leading up to Kagura was bumper to bumper as the sun began to set. In the forecast, a nominal chance of snow loomed, but temperatures were expected to hover just above freezing, and no one expected any accumulation. Besides, who didn't want snow at a ski lodge?

Champagne flowed. Dancers danced. The delicious finger foods passed around by Kagura's friendly staff were seemingly endless. The fireplace roared, fairy lights twinkled. It was a perfect night.

Hardly anyone seemed to notice when the weather turned.

By eleven thirty, it was really coming down. The last run of the tram happened about fifteen minutes before midnight, though no one thought to inform any of the party's attendees. The tram car sat at the base of the mountain, abandoned on the darkened platform, the operator having hurried off home. Still, it wasn't until after midnight, when the party began to wind down, people ready to stumble home to their warm beds, that the trouble truly began.

Still, when it became clear that no one was getting off the mountain, there wasn't an immediate wave of panic. There were no killer cookies, no flying monkeys or gnomes. It was just a little snow. A little adventure. The staff, ever competent, broke out extra blankets. The fire burned bright. Warm drinks were passed around. When the power went out, near dawn, there was a ripple of worry through the herd, but everyone settled soon enough. It would be fine. They were safe, they were warm enough. The storm would break soon.

Then, the sun didn't come up.

"What time was sunrise?" A murmured voice wondered. Then another. More questions. Pulling out cell phones with no usable signal. Checking watches. It was after 8am and it was as pitch dark outside as if it were in the middle of the night.

"Maybe it's the cloud cover?" Someone guessed. "The snow's really coming down," said another. But by noon, an increasingly anxious frustration had settled over the people trapped at Kagura. A few had managed to exchange texts with loved ones in the city. They, too, were dealing with unexplained darkness, but they, at least, had power.

"Lucky them," someone muttered, tossing their rapidly dying cell phone aside.

All of that was mostly frustrating. Frustrating, but manageable. But as the first day wore on, rumors began to be spread.

"There's something in the snow..."

There was something in the shadows. As long as you stayed by the fire, as long as you didn't venture out alone, everything seemed okay. But there were stories filtering in from the city, too, about creatures in the snow– those strange creatures from the rifts, and they were growing bolder by the day.

Within the week, the sense of fun adventure had waned, and everyone was just ready to get back to their lives. The sun rose on a wary city, and the sighs of relief were just a little bit cynical.

"God, I hate this place," someone said, as they boarded the tram to finally go home, only a week later than they'd intended. They were met with a chorus of grumbled agreement and humorless laughter.

"Come back next year!" A member of staff called out, a friendly smile plastered on their face and their eyes haunted.

"We always do."

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