"Wow, you're still alive. It must truly be a Christmas miracle." Replied a female voice.

    Evein slowly opened his eyes, and the first thing he saw was that enormous scarlet moon in the night sky. Then she appeared: a strange young woman with short curly blond hair and round, large scarlet eyes. However, what caught Evein's attention the most were the pair of twisted horns growing on both sides of her head.

     "Ah!" Evein exclaimed in shock. He immediately got up from the snow. The boy looked around; he wasn't sure where he was. There were large wooden houses painted in bright colors, strange beings made of gingerbread, as well as small goblins, fairies and tall elves who curiously watched the boy. Because of their clothing, they seemed like they were from someplace in the mid-19th century... "Definitely not in Ström..."

     "Ström?"

     "No, you're not in Ström," replied the horned girl. "This is Sweetzerland."

     "Sweetzerland?"

     "Well, also known as the village of Sweetzerland. The village was renamed in honor of our savior," replied the young woman, pointing towards a statue of an imposing man holding a gigantic stone axe. "Who is he?"

    "He is Laras Kroma... our..."

     Suddenly, Evein flashed back to everything that had happened, how that man had tried to kidnap his sister, how Evein had punched him in the nose, and then the man had thrown him against the wall.

     "Yavine!" Evein shouted. The boy started running down the main avenue of the small village, unsure where to go, but he didn't care at that moment. He wasn't thinking straight; all he cared about was escaping, running, and finding his sister.

     "Wait! Don't run!" exclaimed the horned girl.

    The villagers were stunned watching Evein, but the guy only felt fear seeing those strange beings. He started to pick up speed and left the village behind him. Evein ran through the snow and in the distance could see a castle with tall towers of bluish stone. He felt a strange vibe inside, as if an invisible and irresistible force were leading him to the castle.

     The young man began running again, this time towards that ominous fortress. In an instant, he was thrown to the ground covered in snow. The horned girl had knocked him down.

     "Why did you do that?" exclaimed Evein.

     "Because you were about to fall!" replied the horned woman, pointing ahead. Both were lying in front of a huge pit that separated them from the castle.

     Evein looked down, but he couldn't see anything. Then, he started to see hundreds of bright scarlet eyes growling from the depths of the abyss.

     "They are Charboniers," said the young woman. "No matter if you had fallen from the sky, down there you wouldn't have survived with the Charboniers. Nothing survives them, and they're always hungry..."

      "What is this place?" asked Evein, frightened. The boy looked around, on his right and left there was nothing but a plain covered in snow and bare trees. And in front of him, the abyss where many bright scarlet eyes moaned and growled from within.

      "This is Purgis."

      "Purgis?"

       "Yes, Purgis, also known as the world between worlds."

       Evein understood then... "We're not on Earth, are we?"

      "Earth?"

       "Yes..." Evein replied. Immediately, he felt the woman gripping his shoulders tightly.

      "You say you're from Earth?! Are you a human?" the woman asked Evein.

      "Yes," the boy replied.

     Then, the woman let go of Evein and with teary eyes, let out a small gasp.

     "It can't be...the prophecy is true. Humans will return to Purgis to end the eternal winter."

      "What? Miss, look. I don't have time for this."

      "No, you don't understand. You're one of them. One of the Forbidden Warriors of Christianity. That's why you fell from the sky on that comet."

      "Comet?"

      "Yes, look. I don't know who you are, but you're definitely a human, your ears give it away," replied the horned girl, then she pushed aside the strands covering Evein's ears.

      "I just want to rescue my little sister. She...we both were kidnapped by a bearded man."

     "A bearded man? Let me guess, long white beard, long brown and gray hair with a black hat?"

     "Yes, that's the one!"

      Then the horned woman let out another sigh and with a sad tone spoke. "The man you're looking for is Alexander Noelius IV." Then the woman raised her hand and pointed towards the imposing fortress on the other side of the pit. "Alexander Noelius IV is the lord of the Astral Castle and the King of Purgis," replied the horned woman.

     "And this Noelius, what does he want with my sister? Why did he kidnap her?"

     "He does that every year... he always kidnaps a child to sacrifice at midnight and continue another year of winter..."

     "No! No! No!" shouted Evein. Then he started laughing nervously. "This has to be a dream... yes, it definitely has to be a dream. I'll wake up any moment now..."

      Then Evein felt a slap on his face that knocked him into the icy snow.

     "This is not a dream," said the woman. Then, with a serious look, she replied. "There's a way you can rescue your sister from the Astral Castle."

     "What way?"

      "The Sword of Saint Joseph of Arimathea," said the woman, then extended her hand to help Evein get up.

      "By the way, what's your name, human?" the woman asked.

     "Evein, Evein Coaster."

     The horned woman smiled.

     "Pleasure to meet you, Evein Coaster. I'm Simma-Ron."