Chapter 1
10 years later
The Alpine landscape had changed with the seasons; snow blanketed the mountains, meadows, and the hills and the people of the Baemi tribe were cuddled in their fur coats. The flocks of sheep and the herds of horses and cows were locked up in the barns. Winter had arrived.
Ishild, now age sixteen, had grown with beauty and agility. She was widely known as the 'Night Watcher' of the village as she developed a habit of going out at night and joining the guards to do night patrol.
She was quick to spot anything unusual and she did spot a few wolves scurrying outside the village a few times. Ishild was also good with a sword and a bow.
Her mother, Rosmunda died ten years ago after giving birth to Ishild's brother, Gerlach. Rosmunda's dying words to her daughter were, "Ishild, everyone is born with a beautiful soul, but some are not beautiful in appearance. Show compassion to them."
Ishild's father, Lord Gerhard raised his children and had them educated and be taught how to defend themselves. Gerlach, however, took the defense teachings too seriously and often fought with his sister and the other children of the village.
Ishild felt that there was something wrong with her brother. He refused to apologize following a fight with her and he would grab a sword and threaten her with it.
"One day I will take over this village and you will be beneath me!" Gerlach would say to her.
"You can't become chief, only the ruling chief's heir will take over," Ishild reminded him, but he was too stubborn to listen.
"I will be chief one day!" Gerlach shouts all through the house. Their father was too busy to discipline his son and Ishild took in his brother's abuse.
Ishild's mind was comforted by the wintry landscape as she admired the cold months. She was always dazzled by the moon's glow on the snow and the stars looked like shiny snowflakes.
On this night, Ishild was doing patrol on her horse Willahelm. She takes in the beauty and the stillness of the night. It was awfully cold and Ishild cuddles up in her fur coat.
"Ishild, you should go and get some sleep, I'll keep an eye out," her friend, Adalhard said to her.
"I'm fine," she replied, but Adalhard shakes his head. Adalhard was the captain of the nighttime guard and a personal friend of Ishild's father and the chief of the Baemi tribe. He had black hair and brown eyes, but to Ishild, his eyes could warm up a gloomy day.
"Let me do one more run around of the village and I'll go home," Ishild adds. Adalhard nods and Ishild urges Willahelm to go. The horse and rider go to the meadow where she spotted a few deer digging in the snow for grass.
Ishild knew that the villagers would appreciate a deer as the Feast of Saint Nicholas was fast approaching. She takes her bow, draws an arrow, and takes aim at a buck.
Suddenly, the buck she was aiming at screeches as if it was afraid of something. Ishild has Willahelm move out of sight and she watches the deer. Just then, the deer run into the woods, but Ishild sees something unusual. It was difficult to see in the dark woods, but Ishild could see something attack one of the deer.
Being curious, Ishild has Willahelm go into a gallop and they rush towards the woods. Willahelm, however, stops dead in his tracks, rears, and neighs.
Ishild calms her horse, but her eyes stare at a pair of bright yellow eyes. The creature then turns and runs away into the darkness. "Stop!" Ishild shouts, but the creature was gone.
She dismounts and investigates the scene. The glow of the moon helped her see better and she could see that the snow was stained with blood. She looks around and notices a pair of large hoof prints. They were cloven-hoof, much like a goat's, but they were of the hind legs.
Ishild stares into the woods, but nothing appeared. "Ishild!" someone shouts and she turns to see the night guard trio coming towards her.
She hides the blood and sweeps away the hoof-prints under the snow with her feet. Adalhard approaches her with a torch. "What happened? We heard you shouting," he said.
"I was chasing a deer, but it got away. It was a foolish thing to do," Ishild lies.
"Don't be too harsh on yourself, the Feast of Saint Nicholas is a few weeks away. There's plenty of time," Adalhard replies and he has the other guards return to their posts. He mounts his horse and Ishild does the same.
She then looks deep into the dark forest, but nothing appeared out of the ordinary. She waits, but still nothing. Ishild turns Willahelm around and they return to the village.
A pair of yellow eyes take a peek out from behind a tree. The creature takes one last look at Ishild before she turns to leave. It remains still and keeps its eyes on her until she was gone. "Beautiful," it says in a low whisper. It then hoists the deer it just killed onto its back and goes deep into the darkness.
From the author: How's this for excitement? While in the film, Krampus does not speak, but rather howls and growls, so I decided long ago to make him speak like a human.
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