if (Christmas && warmth_needed) then draw_heat_from(corpse) else awaken(spirit_of_ice, consume_souls)

In a desolate future where Earth is trapped in a permanent winter, the last remnants of humanity cling to survival through a grim Christmas ritual known as The Warming. Each year, families trek to the corpse fields, drawing fleeting warmth from the frozen bodies of those who came before. For Jonas and Elena, this ritual is as much an act of remembrance as it is survival—a way to honour the past while keeping the relentless cold at bay.

But when Jonas brings back an unfamiliar, ancient corpse encased in ice, he and Elena unwittingly awaken a vengeful spirit of winter. As frost creeps through their home and chilling visions of an ancient world emerge, they begin to realise the truth behind their tradition—and the dark price it demands. Bound to a timeless cycle of sacrifice, they face an entity older than memory, a devourer of warmth, and a force that has no mercy.

Frost is a haunting reimagining of winter’s spirit, a tale of survival, sacrifice, and the bleak legacy of an endless winter.

Read the short story [runtime=”21m”]:

Enjoyed this story? Discover more chilling Christmas tales in The Shadow of Yule – Nine Tales of Festive Fear. Available now in paperback and ebook on Amazon.

Soundtrack (from The Darkwave Before Xmas): Boreas’ Dominion