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Trials of Astania: Bloody Christmas

Graphic Entry for Trials of Astania

Prompt: Dark red snow begins to fall from the sky

The cover (I'm not sure why the quality is diminished on here...):

Elements and Images displayed below are all from Canva. (The man is covered in case it's too much for the Wattpad content guidelines). Lighting and minor adjustments with effects done on Adobe Lightroom.

Below is an excerpt from the short story that I've written inspired by this cover to show how the prompt was used to create it.

I look up and the previously clear skies are replaced with the darkest and reddest clouds I've ever seen. Suddenly, snow starts to fall, which only further dampens my mood.

“Not more fucking sn—”

I abruptly stop when I notice the color of the snowflakes. They are red. Blood-red. I rub a few snowflakes that land on my hand and smell the melted snow. It smells like iron mixed with sulfur.

“What the fuck…” Chris exclaims as he gapes at the dark red snow dancing and falling from the sky.

Before I can reply, a distant scream echoes throughout the town. Chris curses while I feel a strange feeling of calmness spread over me. It's weird. The sound feels… therapeutic.

I notice that the town has become deadly silent as the scream suddenly stops. The carolers have stopped their screeching cat noises, and everyone is frozen in one place save for a few terrified people running inside their homes.

Thunder and lightning crack across the ominous clouds that still retain their dark-red color while releasing more blood-red snow. And all of a sudden, I see the shape of a creature slithering through the sky. No, not just one. Several of them begin to emerge from the sky and head straight down towards the town.

What happens next is almost incomprehensible. Demonic sounds and roars fill the air, as well as people screaming their lungs out. I watch as one serpent-like creature snatches ten people with its mouth and snaps its jaws shut. Waterfalls of blood spurt in every direction, staining the terrified people running below it like ants on fire.

I hear Chris next to me yelling in terror as I watch the gory scene unfold before me. A winged bear with shark teeth swallows five small children while a vulture-like creature with a lion's head grabs an elderly couple with its talons. I hear the satisfying crunch of bones as the creature devours them, their screams disappearing into the void.