Vanilla sat down and smiled bitterly at him. "You may want to sit down for this." She stopped, letting the sudden silence speak for her until she was ready. "The king, he's done things. Unforgivable things. After you were banished, he showed no one mercy."

Her eyes wavered, glancing at the wall. "After he grew tired of whipping the deer, we were reduced to the status of slaves, with little food to survive on. You've seen the factory, right?"

"I can vaguely recall seeing the tall building that was at the other side of the town. Hasn't changed a bit."

"No, it has. Not for the better, unfortunately. He's treats us like shit ever since you left. Those of us who felt brave banded together to stop him." She let out a ragged breath and clenched her fists. "As you can see, we failed. The remaining members are here, while the rest..."

Her sullen face finished her sentence for her. Krampus rubbed his neck, then slid down to Vanilla's eye level. His shoulders tensed when he placed his fingers over his friend's hand. "I'm sorry for not coming soon enough."

In response, the elf gave a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. "You were exiled―what could you do?"

"Well, I'm here now." He couldn't believe Santa's misconduct during his absence. "I've told that idiot so many times that he had to be careful with power. Look away for a century and he makes a mess of things. He needs to be stopped before it gets worse."

Vanilla sighed. "I-It's fine! We don't need your help, we can just―"

"I'm not taking no for an answer. I'll be damned if I let him bring my hard work to shambles." His eyes burned in rage as he heard the clanging of her shackles. "And the guards! What do they think they're doing to innocent workers who were dissatisfied with their treatment?" Unable to control his frustration, Krampus began to pace in front of her cell.

"I understand your rage, Prince. However, if you go against the king, then you might really die this time. King Santa's not the old jolly man you remember." Vanilla wiped her nose. "Many elves died for their beliefs, and I would hate for you to experience the same fate. Don't be reckless and just follow his orders, please!"

Vanilla, "I would rather die for my land than blindly accept this. Especially if it causes such... casualties. Vanilla, I swear I'll return the North Pole to how it used to be."

The elf looked at him, cheeks reddened. She shut her eyes and looked away. "Alright. I know that you'll disobey me even if I force you not to, but if you're going to do this," she reached out, tugging on his soft fur, "don't die, okay?"

Krampus smirked as his tail swung in rapid movements. "Who do you think I am?"

Vanilla smiled as she wiped her remaining tears away. "You haven't changed a bit."

His body tensed at the memory of his exile. The dead birds he had hunted for survival when there wasn't enough sins to eat; the tunnels he dug to shield himself from the countless pellets of snow that hit him; the craving for warmth and food that he dreamed of only to be woken by starvation; if anything, the 'trip' had reduced him to a weakling. He looked at the girl and sighed. "I'm glad that you see it that way. Now then, it's time for whatever work I have to do down here. Meanwhile, tell me what methods you've used in order to impeach our Holy King."

"Well we tried blackmail, but someone burned the evidence. Kidnapping, but he simply ordered the guard to kill himself. Raiding, bombing, preaches," She trailed off, listing their numerous methods of forced retirement. "All for naught."

"My, my. You all have been having a blast, haven't you?"

Vanilla giggled at his attempt to ligthen her mood. "It's no use, Prince; nothing you do will change his mind."

"However, have you ever tried poison? Knowing him, he'll probably drink it like he does wine." The elf that he was checking on while speaking to Vanilla gasped in horror at his words.

"Y-you can't! The North Pole doesn't even legalize those types of things." He scarfed down some of the grey substance that Krampus handed him before shouting, "he'll kill you if he finds out you did it."

The prince froze, locking eyes with a young elf boy who was cowering in the corner of his cell. Why was he arrested? Krampus briefly cast his eyes onto the list that stored a short biography of every inmate to find out.

Apparently he didn't bow when he was in front of the king. How bold of him.  Krampus inwardly cursed after noticing the kid's only a few millennias old.

Despite his inner turmoil, Krampus said, "Me and him have something close to immortality. None of the guards can kill me, though the king certainly would if he was angered enough."

"Gee, like that'll ever happen," Vanilla chimed in.

Krampus shook his head, giving no response as he checked on the next prisoner. "Let's see, you've got food, water, restraints... nothing out of order." As he double-checked his list, he began to wonder why he was there once more. Santa must've been planning something, he figured while glancing at the rust-stained ceiling. With a chuckle hd added, well, so am I.

"Anyways," the girl sighed, "poison? That'll never work. That guy's right―we'll be dead before you know it."

At that, Krampus stilled. "Do not worry," he muttered, "I will handle it. No harm will come to you, I swear."

Vanilla bit her trembling lips to shut out the cry that nearly erupted from her core. "My team failed, but maybe you could give us hope again." With those words embedded in her heart, she took a deep breath and yelled, "I may not be of use to you physically, but I offer any knowledge that will be of assistance."

"Thank you, my dear. It is an honor." He looked over to her cage, a small smile perched on his face. "Excuse my rudeness, but can you tell me where I can find this poison?"

Vanilla hesitated. She looked away, rummaging in the cage of her thoughts. A smile overtook her face as she watched her childhood friend. "It's... in the abandoned cave at the edge of the cliff a few miles past town. But be careful; the pollen that emits from the flowers are deadly. You mustn't breath it in for more than one minute."

Krampus took note of that with a grin. "It'll take me less than a minute to get what I need." He then clutched his clipboard tightly with a hidden rage. His knuckles were almost as white as snow. He couldn't believe what Vanilla told him. That damned king.

Actually, he wondered while stroking his goatee, what if this was going on before my exile, right under my nose? Was that why the elves never truly accepted me? Because they thought I was the one telling him to do such cruel things?

Krampus stared at the concrete ground with wide eyes. "Vanilla," he called out with his back towards her, "I'm going to fix this."

"I pray for your safe return, Prince."

"Oh, no need to be formal. I'll be back in one piece." With his job almost finished, he bid Vanilla a farewell just as the elevator in front of him opened.