Krampus

Christmas night was meant to bring magic and joy into people’s homes, filling hearts with love. But not everyone deserved to survive it.

The disobedient were destined for punishment — eternal torment in the realm of Krampus. As the fires in hearths began to die down, dark elves were already climbing down chimneys, letting the unclean slip into human homes.

Snow fell thick and slow, covering rooftops with a white blanket, making the night seem almost bright — until the full moon vanished behind heavy, dark clouds.

Inside the houses, warm yellow candlelight flickered. Children laughed, prayed, and whispered wishes to Santa, unaware that this year their wishes might be heard by the wrong ones. For some, this night would become the last nightmare of their lives.

The girl slept beneath a heavy blanket, clutching a small pillow to her chest. Her sleep was oppressive, thick, as if a premonition were trying to warn her: something terrible and irreversible would happen tonight. In the corner of the room stood a Christmas tree, casting crooked shadows across the walls, while the fire crackled softly in the hearth.

A bell chimed, barely audible. Then a second. And another — forming a grim, broken melody.

The candles went out all at once, as if strangled by invisible hands. Cold flooded the room, and shadows crept along the walls — long, thin, чужие. Soot poured from the chimney, and with it they descended.

The dark elves were nothing like those from fairy tales. Horned, wrapped in black, floor-dragging rags, chains clutched in long fingers tipped with sharp claws. Their eyes were darker than darkness itself, and their mouths stretched into horrifying grins, revealing blades instead of teeth. Krampus’s black servants.

Every step they took was accompanied by the chime of bells hanging from their necks and wrists.

“Disobedient…” they whispered in unison, leaning over her sleeping face, seeing what no human eye could perceive.

Throwing back the blanket, the elves swiftly shackled her legs with chains, leaving no chance of escape. Cackling maliciously, they rushed back toward the chimney, dragging the girl after them.

She struck the floor painfully and barely had time to regain her senses before her body was pulled by the chains, dragged across smoldering embers. Then — darkness. Fear and pain stole her consciousness.

Perhaps that was for the best, rather than seeing unknown, terrifying creatures dragging you through the snow-covered forest — straight into hell.

Consciousness returned slowly, with a splitting headache and frozen limbs. When her eyes opened, she understood at once: she was no longer in her bed.

She lay in the middle of a vast underground hall, bathed in a crimson light, as if drenched in blood. Chains hanging from columns and the ceiling swayed gently, while bells engraved with intricate symbols chimed softly, as though mocking her.

He stood at the very center.

Tall, horned, wrapped in hides and living shadows that twisted through the air. His hooves left marks on the stone, instantly crusted with frost. His eyes — two malevolent embers — stared directly at her, as if the verdict had already been decided.

His face appeared young, yet unnaturally gray, and every movement carried the weight of centuries and absolute authority.

“On Christmas night, your judgment is carried out, disobedient girl,” he said coldly. His voice rolled through the hall, making the walls vibrate. The bells on his belt rang as Krampus stepped closer, grinning.

“You have been very disobedient… and now you will burn in hellfire. Or else…”

He leaned closer.

“I will keep you for myself, human pet.”