Chapter 1: The Christmas That Changed Everything

“Jagger, keep an eye on your sister. Don’t let her get too far!” their father called out.

Jagger waved a hand nonchalantly, trailing after Hannah as she darted toward the towering Christmas tree in the middle of Takashimaya Mall.

“Hannah, isn’t it amazing?” he said when he caught up to her.

Her eyes gleamed as she took in the sight. The tree was immense, at least twenty meters tall, its ornaments glittering beneath countless strings of lights.

“Wow!” she exclaimed, nodding up at him with enthusiasm.

Their parents were making their way toward them, smiling as their father spoke animatedly to their mother.

“Mum, Dad, look! Look at the big Christmas tree!” Hannah shouted.

Their mother ruffled Hannah’s hair, smiling softly. “It’s beautiful, isn’t it? How about we get a picture, the four of us?”

She pulled a Polaroid camera from her purse and handed it to a passerby. “Excuse me, could you take a picture of us?”

“Of course,” the man replied, accepting the camera.

They bunched together, their mother in the middle with Hannah, Jagger and his father on either side.

“Okay, say cheese.”

“Cheese!” their parents chorused, while Jagger and Hannah dissolved into laughter.

Click.

The man returned the camera and the developing photo. “Thank you,” their mother said, shaking the picture gently.

“That’s a cute photo,” she remarked, showing it to her husband. With a marker, she scribbled Hannah’s 15th birthday across the bottom before slipping it into a box filled with other photos some old, some new.

“Come on, who wants cake?” she said, leading the way out of the mall.

“Me!” Jagger and Hannah answered in unison.

The afternoon sun cast a golden glow over Orchard Road.

“Good afternoon, Singapore!” a cheerful voice announced from a nearby radio. “Today, December 20th, 2062, we’re enjoying bright sunshine. With lows of 28 and highs of 32 degrees Celsius, expect clear skies for the next three days. Have a happy winter holiday!”

“I feel like cheesecake,” their mother mused.

“OMG, Mum, me too! What about that cheesecake place near the subway?” Hannah suggested with a giggle.

“Jagger?” their mother asked.

“I’m fine with anything,” he replied with a smile.

As they walked toward the shop, Jagger looked up at the transformed skyline. The familiar skyscrapers of Orchard Road had become futuristic marvels, their glass facades gleaming beneath the sun. Holograms floated around the building, advertisements, festive scenes, even a Santa Claus sleigh hovering in mid-air.

Farther ahead, a massive holographic snow globe shimmered across the side of a building, displaying a cozy winter cabin amidst falling snow. Despite the tropical heat, the illusion of a winter wonderland felt real.

“Look, Jagger, it’s snowing!” Hannah cried, reaching for the drifting flakes.

Jagger tried to catch one, only for his hand to pass through the projection.

“Big brother, you know they’re not real,” Hannah teased, giggling.

He flushed and waved her off. “Yeah, I knew that. Just looked so real.”

They passed storefronts bursting with technology and fashion. A group of children gathered around a holographic Christmas game, their laughter adding to the festive energy.

“Dad, can I check out the tech store? They have the new VR system,” Jagger asked.

His father nodded. “Go ahead.”

“Hannah, come with me,” Jagger said.

They slipped into the sleek shop, eyes wide at the array of gadgets. A VR headset with a matching bodysuit caught Jagger’s attention. He picked it up, reverent.

“Can you even afford that?” Hannah teased.

“Shut up. That’s why I’ve been working part-time these past two months.” He stroked the headset lovingly. “You’ll be mine soon, beauty.”

Hannah wrinkled her nose. “You’re so weird sometimes.”

“Oh, shush.” He rubbed his cheek against the device.

“Alright, let it go. I want cheesecake before the place fills up,” Hannah said, tugging his arm.

“Fine,” Jagger pouted, reluctantly setting it back. “I’ll come back for you, my love,” he whispered dramatically.

“You’re a freak,” Hannah muttered.

They rejoined their parents outside, where holographic elves and Santa Claus danced, scattering trails of glitter. The spectacle dazzled the crowd until, suddenly, the images froze and glitched. Children groaned in disappointment.

Then the sunlight dimmed. A chill swept the street, unnatural in Singapore’s climate.

A low hum filled the air.

Everyone looked up.

A massive portal had opened in the sky, twenty kilometers across, its center black, rimmed with a pulsating blue aura.

The street fell silent. Faces lifted, some in shock, some in awe.

“That’s a huge hologram,” someone muttered, trying to laugh it off.

“Which company is advertising this time?” another asked.

But Jagger’s father frowned. “It looks too real. I’ve never seen a hologram this lifelike.” He gripped his wife’s hand, scanning for the children.

“Honey, it’s just a prank, right?” she whispered, clutching his arm.

“Let’s go get the kids,” he said quietly.

–

Jagger and Hannah stared at the vast anomaly above them.

“Hey… doesn’t that look like one of the portals from your games?” Hannah asked, her voice wavering between awe and unease.

Jagger shook his head. “Yeah, but that can’t be real. This is real life, it’s just an advert.”

Their father appeared beside them, his expression grim. He rested a firm hand on Jagger’s shoulder. “Hannah, Jagger, come with me. Stay calm and stay close. Jagger hold your sister’s hand, and don’t let go until I tell you.”

Jagger obeyed instantly, tightening his grip around Hannah’s fingers.

“What is going on, Clark? You’re scaring me,” their mother whispered, her voice trembling.

“I don’t know,” he replied harshly, his tone low but edged with dread. “But I have a bad feeling about this. I don’t want to stay here to find out. Walk calmly. Don’t run. And don’t let go of each other.”

Together, they pushed through the crowds. All around, people stared upward at the yawning portal, their faces a mix of delight, confusion, and fear. Some smiled as though expecting a spectacular product reveal; others looked pale and uneasy.

Jagger kept glancing back at the sky. There’s no way that’s real, he told himself, though his heart thudded louder with each step.

The wind picked up without warning, a chilling howl racing through the streets. Holograms fizzled and blinked out one by one, plunging Orchard Road into an unnatural stillness. Dread hung thick in the air.

Clark tightened his grip on his wife’s hand, pulling her along. Then, without warning, something emerged.

A figure stepped through the rift.

It hung in the sky like a phantom, its pale skin glowing faintly in the dim light. Long white hair spilled down its shoulders, flowing like silk in the rising wind. Black lightning sparked and crackled across its body, each arc leaving an afterimage in the eyes of those who dared to look. Its robe billowed around it like a shroud, and when its cold, grey eyes swept across the city, the weight of its gaze pressed down like an omen of ruin.

“What… what is that thing?” a woman whispered in terror as the family passed.

Jagger glanced back once more. The sight froze him. That figure, human and yet not, radiated a presence both ethereal and demonic, like a harbinger of doom.

“Don’t look ba-” his father began, but his words were cut short by the sudden robotic announcement echoed from the citywide broadcast system:

“Warning: An unknown spatial anomaly has been detected in the downtown district. All citizens are advised to evacuate immediately and seek shelter underground. This is not a drill.”

Some bystanders still laughed nervously, clinging to denial.

“Wah, this one really getting out of hand sia. What kind of company got so much money?” one man said with a shaky chuckle.

“Ya lah, but this one seriously damn scary, feels too real,” his friend muttered. “Eh, come on lah, let’s get out of here.”

That is when the sirens began to wail.

Panic surged like a breaking wave, sweeping through the streets. People shoved and scattered in every direction. The festive joy of Orchard Road crumbled into chaos.

Clark lowered his head, gripping his wife’s hand and pushing forward with all his strength. “Stay close!” he barked. His voice was nearly drowned out by the storm of footsteps, cries, and the endless blaring of sirens.

Jagger held onto Hannah as tightly as he could. The city he knew to be bright, safe, and full of light was collapsing into something unrecognizable.

–

“Ye Gods of the forsaken, I, Ishtar’ka, offer thee sacrifice in pursuit of thy blessing!” The figure’s voice thundered across the city as he raised his arms toward the heavens. The earth quaked in response, trembling as though in fear of what was to come.

A scream tore through the air, sharp and piercing, dragging every eye skyward. The black heart of the portal twisted and churned, shifting into a swirling white vortex that seemed to defy the very laws of nature.

Jagger’s chest tightened as panic clawed at him. His gaze swept the chaos around them, crowds pushing, children crying and before a sound unlike anything he had ever heard split the world apart.

A shrieking roar.

It was deafening, a guttural cry that shook the ground beneath their feet. Windows rattled, buildings shuddered, and shockwaves rippled outward in rolling waves of destruction. The sound swallowed the city whole, drowning every other voice in sheer terror.

From the vortex emerged something vast, monstrous. A serpent, colossal beyond comprehension, slid forth from the heavens. Its scales gleamed in deep amethyst hues streaked with veins of silver, shimmering like molten metal under the fading sunlight. Its eyes, twin pools of burning crimson locked onto the world below with unholy fury.

The beast descended, its maw yawning wide. Rows upon rows of dagger-like fangs glistened with saliva, a predator’s grin stretched across a face large enough to swallow whole streets.

When it struck the earth, the impact was cataclysmic.

Its enormous body slammed down with a thunderous crash, flattening cars and people alike, grinding buildings into dust. Blood streaked across the ruined streets, mixing with shattered glass and steel. Shockwaves tore through the city, shattering windows and hurling debris like shrapnel.

The serpent lifted its head high, muscles rippling beneath its armor of scales. It roared again, a cry that rattled bones and clawed into the marrow of every soul present. Time seemed to falter, the city frozen in terror as the creature’s fangs dripped with viscous strands of saliva.

“Unleash thy fury, dread beast!” Ishtar’ka’s voice rang out, triumphant and cruel. “Slay them all! Rend their flesh, sow desolation, and let them taste the wrath of the forgotten gods!” He lowered his hands as the serpent surged forward, its colossal form tearing through the cityscape.

–

“RUN!”

Clark’s voice cut through the madness. His hand clamped around his wife’s, his other seizing Jagger’s shoulder. “Stay together!” he barked.

The family fled, weaving through the chaos. Screams filled the air, rising and falling like a symphony of despair, drowned out only by the monster’s devastation. Hannah sobbed, her cries lost in the greater cacophony as the serpent’s rampage reduced Orchard Road to ruin.

Debris rained from above from shards of glass, broken stone, hunks of metal each one a fresh reminder of their fragility. They ran, dodging death with every desperate step, their hearts pounding in unison with the screams of a city being torn apart.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep