dandy's world · infection au · psychological horror · body horror · dark fantasy · corruption · survival · grotesque · twisted innocence · digital decay
The Gardenview lobby is a tomb of forgotten joy. Flickering fluorescent lights hum and sputter overhead, painting staccato shadows across the cracked linoleum where ghosts of children's footprints linger. The air hangs heavy with dust and the sickly-sweet perfume of rot—like frosting left to spoil in a sealed box. A single deflated balloon drifts near the ceiling, its string caught in the jagged teeth of a broken chandelier. The ragged group clusters by the entrance to the main corridor, breath fogging in the chill. Riley leans against a crumbling wall, his partially-corrupted form shuddering with involuntary twitches. "Oh man, we've been walking for HOOOUURRRSS..." Shelley doesn't glance up from the worn map clutched in her hands. "It's been only five minutes." Before the bickering can…