Little Henry slept soundly in his bed, the sound of the strong winds and the snow having lulled the boy of nine into slumber under his cozy furs. A blizzard had overtaken the little village on the hill, the snow building up around the homes and sliding off the angled roofs. The heated stones under the furs kept the people warm in their beds, out of the shear cold of this winter's storm.

But all was not well in this small, humble place...

It started with a faint rumbling in the ground, then the noise of crunching snow filling the village. There were sounds of bumps and scrapes against the walls. A sudden clunk against Henry's wall woke him from his slumber, and that's when he heard it. The guttural cacophony coming from outside, violent cracks against the wooden homes, and screams from people outside.

"Mom? What's happening?" Little Henry asked, running out to the crackling fireplace where his mother sat, just having put down her knitting needles and wool spool. She got up and grabbed little Henry, lifting him up into a warm hug.

"I don't know, sweetie." She responded, holding her son tightly, both frightened. Every sound of impact against their hearth's walls caused the two to jerk in fear. The inhuman screeches and terrified wails outside grew louder and louder, causing little Henry's tears to flow and his little body shiver.

"Wh-where's daddy?" The young one whimpered, he and his mother huddled in the corner, the dim, flickering light of the fire cast shadows of monsters in the dark, reaching out to grab him, just like the monsters outside.

"I don't know..." The woman clutched her son tighter, their door shook, and their lock rattled. She held Henry close, his cries growing louder. The young mother knew she had to act to protect her little one... "We have to go!" She stood up, running over to the table where their winter furs lay.

Henry slid out of her grip and stood next to her, too scared to say anything. A violent crack came from their door, frightening the boy even further. His mother now clad in fur slipped Henry's fur onto him before picking him up again.

She scurried through the darkness towards the back door, placing an ear against the hard wood, not hearing any threats on the other side, she slid the iron lock away and opened the door, letting in a freezing wind that irritated her eyes. She ran as fast as she could out into the dark, snowy abyss, her feet sinking up to her knees in the snow, the mother knew how vulnerable to the dangers lurking in the dark, but she didn't care. She had to protect her baby.

She kept to the dark corners and alleys as she hurried through the village, every torch she saw in the distance through the thick snowfall was accompanied by writhing dark figures and screams of horror. Every step through the heavy blanket of snow stressed the muscles in her legs, causing them to ache and beg for rest. But as she tread through a clearing, she passed a peculiar sight. It looked like a man at first, but on a second glance, the young mother realized that it wasn't.

It stood tall, long white hair blowing in the wind, it's pale expressionless face held two deep blue eyes, it's gaze pierced her soul, and there on the ground before it was a small group of her fellow villagers, all shivering, bowing before this strange blue-eyed creature. Her grip tightened on her boy Henry as she saw a wave of dark figures emerge from the blizzard. The closer they got, the more she could see. A swarm of the dead rushed towards her! Their rotted faces, exposed bone, and blue eyes all blurred into one another in their frenzy. They flowed around the pale blue eyed creature, and completely ignored the bowing villagers. The dead were soon upon her, the pain of stabbing blades filled her body, and the screams of little Henry as they tore him out of her arms turned to vile gurgling when a walking corpse slit his throat. She didn't even have time to mourn, as the cold darkness overtook her, and everything that she ever was faded into nothing.