Black Christmas

Chapter 19

Santa should be arriving in a few minutes, but Greg figures he should give one last inspirational speech to his men before they take their positions for battle. After all, they're about to lay their lives on the line.

"Listen up, guys."

The elves halt their paths to their battle positions and turn to listen to Greg. For all they know, he could be preparing to speak his final words.

"We started tonight chasing a killer. We went after Santa Claus' and Gordon's murderer. A lot has happened in the last few hours. Lives have been lost, new information has come to light. Now we know that we're chasing down St. Nicholas himself.

"But there's something different about this new St. Nicholas. No longer are we going to see the jolly, happy figure of Christmas. No longer is this man going to shake his belly like a bowl full of jelly. That man is dead, and he's been replaced by an evil far greater than Mephistopheles himself."

Greg almost can't believe the words coming out of his mouth. Never in his life has he spoken with such precision, such urgency, as he is now.

"Guys, I thought we were just chasing a killer. Soon, we found out that we were chasing a serial killer – a psychopath. Now, we know that the situation is far worse than any of us could have imagined. None of us woke up this morning thinking that our night was going to end with us saving the goddamn world. Well, wouldn't you know, that's precisely what we have to do now.

"I'm very proud of the way you've all handled yourselves tonight. Like all of you, I'm emotionally and physically drained. I can barely stand right now, but I know I have to. The only thing keeping me on my feet is the thought of extinction – human extinction, and eventually elf extinction when he's all finished. I don't know about you guys, but I don't want to witness the end of an era like this. I don't want to be given the opportunity to halt a genocide and fail. I want this night to end with Santa Claus impaled on my sword."

The other elves cringe a bit. Even at this point, the thought of killing Santa does not entice them. They know it must be done, but it pains them to think about it too much.

"We're not leaving this house until death. Can I tell you whether it will be our deaths or the death of Santa? Hell no. He's a powerful enemy. He's bested us once, and we still have no idea whether or not this plan of attack will be more effective than the last.

"But you know what, guys? That much shouldn't matter to us. It shouldn't stop us from searching inside and giving everything we have to this cause. Either we're preventing extinction, or we're going to die trying. I know that sounds cliché, but God damn it, it's the truth. I'm sorry it has to be this way, but fuck it. It's this way."

The elves don't look inspired, but they're certainly serious. If they had any problems with killing Santa before, they certainly don't anymore. All of the gunmen are ready to blow him to shit if they get a clean shot. James feels his knife and imagines it going straight across the big man's throat. Jerry visualizes himself popping out of the snow and covering Santa's exit with swords. He knows he could even push him down that chimney if he got the chance.

"I can tell my speech far from pumped you up, but I hope you realize how serious this is. The fate of the world literally lies in our hands. How many men can ever say they've had that opportunity?

"Let's go to work, guys. He should be here any minute, so the time is now. Assume your positions, and remember that tonight is about to end with death."