Dark Years [1]

             And there he sat, sipping his frozen coffee slurpee holding a bag of holiday cards within the main concourse of the run down mall.  The softness of a department store couch did little to curb the overwhelming pressure. Truly this was rock bottom and a rut of society, watching two grown men fist fight over the last Furby. Ending with a deadly strike with a ceramic lamp on display, it proved to be  quite horrific. Phased little by the transgression, it served as a bit of amusement on his way out.
            He finished the coffee beverage with a audible groan, if only there was a bit more of it left he could delay the inevitable here.   One of the salesmen walked up to the man sitting on the couch in an attempt to sell him the furniture he was lounging on. Not really listening to what he had to say or answering his questions on how he liked it, he read off his name tag. "Todd, the couch isn't important. What is important is that you seem like a well mannered man. So this capricious soul here will give you a Christmas present.  Close your eyes and imagine somewhere that is not here, if you close your eyes and believe me, you'll be there." The salesman mid sentence blinked as he was interjected, shaking his head in confusion and disbelief. Still the young man on the couch insisted he did not have much time and that he should go along with what he was saying. So Todd closed his eyes and he imagined being home with his grandmother, eating holiday dinner with her and her two dogs Andy and Lucky.  Todd disappeared, falling on a familiar couch suddenly with his face being licked back and forth.
          The young man pulled out a small spherical device from the pocket of his hoodie and everything within a 666 yard distance turned to black. He had activated the hyper-capacitor and the soul singularity catalyst had been activated.  It just felt like the time was right for this. The matter/anti-mater reactions annihilated everything within the mall and its parking lot and all that remained was a pulsating black sphere that seemed metallic and solid on the outside. It devoured light within short ranges like a plague, sucking in the beams in grotesque and aggressive manner.   This was the first of the "voids" to be born ... and the start of everyone's dark year.