Checkpoint Yule

“Ughhhh” moans Santa as he raises his head from the softly fallen snow. His vision is blurry and distorted but he sees several blurry reindeer trotting around, being guided around by the smaller forms of a couple of elves.

“SANTA, SANTA, ARE YOU OKAY, CAN YOU WALK?” says Jingleman loudly to Santa, leaning into the edge of Santa’s peripheral. 

“I don’t know,” murmurs Santa weakly, slowly pushing himself to sit up on his knees to survey the scene as his vision begins to stabilize. The crash site spans an area of about 100 yards with several pieces of the Sleigh scattered about. The reindeer all appear to be up and moving, only Dasher walks with a slight limp, his leg bandaged in festive tinsel. 

“Th’ Sleigh is a complete loss, Santa. Although we’ve salvaged enough of the reigns to rig a harness so that Vixen and Prancer can get Dasher back to the North Pole. We’ll call Rudolph’s cousin Leroy and grab Sleigh 2. We can rendezvous with you at point Yule,” reports Candymittens in his thick Scottish accent.

“Sounds like a plan, be sure that you all take off in differing directions until you reach a safe altitude. We’re lucky we’ve only lost the Sleigh today. We don’t need to lose anyone else,” replies Santa.

“I’ll stay wi’th you, I ain’t leavin’ you ‘ere by yerself,” assures Snazzyflakes.

“I appreciate that friend, whatever shot us down will surely continue his pursuit of us. We must proceed with haste,” replies Santa.

……………………………………………………………………………………………………………

Santa and Snazzyflakes make their way across the highs and lows of the Frosted Hills, trying to mask their movement as much as possible by sticking close to the massive pine trees that cover the area. They are making their way towards the Spearmint peak, otherwise known as checkpoint Yule. Checkpoint Yule is the closest favorable exfiltration points in the target area. Though not a full retreat, Santa couldn’t help but fill a sense of frustration at the time taken to regroup when he could be hunting the Blizzard. However, the use of Sleigh 2 is necessary, as one could not cover such a large target area efficiently. 

The worry of some unknown danger out there capable of shooting down his Sleigh still weighs heavy on Santa, especially now that they are travelling overground with less mobility, armor, and firepower. A large candycane gun is strapped across Snazzyflakes’ back and Santa has his magical gift sack complete with his trusty gift launcher attached, a far cry from the robust armament of the Sleigh.

The pair come to the edge of the plateau that drops into the valley, leading up to the Frosty Mountain on which the Spearmint peak resides, when suddenly a loud roar shakes the snow from the trees surrounding them. 

Down from the mountain descends the Yeti…

Narrated by Brandon Warner