The air was filled with the sound of sleigh bells as he made his final approach to the workshop. It was a long and exhausting night, and he was glad it was over. Now he just wanted to sit in front of a fireplace, put up his feet, and have his wife bring him an ice-cold milk and some of her wonderful sugar cookies. He was ready for a nice extended vacation.

He wasn’t quite sure what it was that made him look back over his shoulder. He glanced, scanning quickly, his eyes fixing on nothing but snow gently trailing off and away from behind his sleigh. He shook his head, snapped the reins, and sped the reindeer faster towards home.

They were floating overhead on hand-made air gliders, skillfully adjusting for air flow and calculating the precise angle of decent. They had ditched their traditional garb for thick white cotton outfits that allowed them to blend in with the falling snow.

The leader motioned and the group spread out and began to dive. As they neared their target, they drew their deadly swords.