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Whether it be through embodying the sin or tempting weak wills to the sin, James —as the ultimate embodiment of evil— could go under any sin here. Which is exactly my point. Nothing is ever enough for James. Schemes that challenge his genius mind, stretch his capability for manipulation, take up months of his life…all because entirely ruining the life of his meal makes them taste that much sweeter when he swallows them whole. Literally. His over-indulgence is that of evil itself. In our world the consumption of human flesh is the ultimate taboo. James becomes a starved animal in its presence, his own flesh contributing to a gluttonous cycle in any human he wishes to control. His very blood is an addictive substance.

The Virgin Erika 

“In the history of man there have been only two immaculate conceptions; the first being God and the virgin Mary and the birth of their son, Jesus. The second was Satan with the virgin Erika and the birth of their son, Santa.” - Santa’s Slay 2005

This is the entirety of the information we’re given about Santa’s mother. The simple and most logical conclusion to draw is that Erika probably did not consent to being impregnated, the devil is the devil after all. But I wanted to take things a more interesting route and subvert the story of Mary as Santa subverts the story of Jesus. For those unaware, in the Bible an angel comes to Mary to tell her of God’s plan and she “agrees” (power dynamics and Mary’s age notwithstanding). Erika, on the other hand, was a fully grown woman who sought out the help of the Gods. 

In the Santa’s Slay universe christianity is true, other gods do not exist. But the Devil disguised himself in a form that would be more familiar to a norsewoman: Loki. 

During my research into old norse culture I found that status wasn’t displayed necessarily through color, but the saturation of it. In the bok av Claus Erika is shown wearing multiple items of clothing that are very colorful and golden jewelry, implying that she either comes from a well off family or was married to a wealthy viking. Either way, I believe Erika sought divine intervention for want of a child, a real family. 

“Loki” gave her what she wanted, in the way he always does. Erika was merely a vessel for Santa, what Lucifer truly gave her was immortality. Her child would be stripped from her but she would be free to wander the earth for the rest of time with humanity as her family. 

Santa has never met her. 

Inn Fíflski

In old Scandinavia witches, or völva, were highly respected and sometimes had more privilege than a jarl. It was believed that they had a unique connection to the magic of prophecy and destiny. Even though the norse pantheon is a farce here, magic is still very real. For a time she was like any other -convening with the spirit world and enjoying an elevated status- but Lucifer is known to be a player of long, cruel, games. To prepare the witch he stripped her of her magical powers, which resulted in her being exiled. Other norsemen believed she must have done something to seriously anger the gods. 

“Loki” appeared to her and led her to a cloistered community of elves, servants of his that lived in constant fear of vikings and animal predators, known for their incredible skills and craftsmanship. She would be fed, clothed, and housed by the elves in exchange for caring for his son. 

The witch's name has been lost to time, but when it was discovered that she was living amongst the elves with an unknown child people began to call her “Inn Fíflski”- the foolish one. 

Inn raised Santa alongside the elves, he would protect them with his inhuman strength as long as they obeyed him without question. She taught him everything that she knew about their culture, language, arithmetic, etc. and the elder elves filled in the gaps. The elves herded creatures called Heldeer (physically resembling what you and I would call a European bison) that the local vikings were also hunting into extinction. Two members of the species remained, a mother and her fresh calf. The mothers milk sustained both the baby antichrist and her calf, who would one day pull his sleigh.

The boy was bigger and stronger than any human his age but he did not yet have the flames of hell at his fingertips. His lust for blood and power was larger than the body that contained it. Young Santa also enjoyed plenty of childish things. His favorite were games of chance, both because he was intelligent and often won on his own merits and because the elves would always let him win. Inn made sure that Santa was aware of who his father was and the birthright that came along with this, she was less a mother to him and more like a nanny, she may have been the adult but he was in charge. 

At the age of 16 Santa was now considered a man. His father appeared to him for the first time and revealed his true identity, putting a face to the voice that whispered to him every night. 

His task was simple: Kill the woman who raised him and be filled with demonic power. 

Gaddi Agnarson & Einráði Galmrsson

Santa’s next task was to go to the nearby village that had once exiled Inn Fíflski and integrate himself. Santa told them who he was and presented himself as a selfless, doting, ward who cared for the older woman until she passed, thus freeing him from taking care of her. 

During the climax of Santa’s Slay we see Santa himself find the bok av Claus, nostalgically pondering a page featuring himself and two other vikings. A blue suited one to Santa’s right, stood closer to him, and a green one wielding an axe defensively to his left. I’ve named these two Gaddi Agnarson and Einráði Galmrsson. A young Einráði was one of the first to meet Santa and vocally disagreed with his uncritical acceptance in to the community. His pleas fell on deaf ears as Santa swiftly won the norsemen over with his feats of strength, he quickly came to be less than well liked as his true colors bled through, but no one could argue with his value as a viking. He also demanded the elves no longer be hunted, but instead taken as slaves. As the film says, the Dag Av Morde slayings on Santa’s birthday every year were considered unexplained, so Santa with his superior strength and strategic intelligence was considered a protector and given privileges. 

Ein may not have really liked Santa from the start but if there was anything he cared about most in the world, it was self preservation, and befriending Santa seemed like a very good idea. Santa in turn enjoyed the bitterly sardonic mans company. There was hardly anything left unspoken between them which both found refreshing. But there was no trust, Santa was aware that the man would turn on him and their comrade in a heartbeat if it meant saving his own hide. 

Gaddi was another young man who Ein had always found quite irritating, thus, Santa quickly came to love him. As one would a brother in arms, of course. He was mischievous and mirthful, always laughing at his own jokes and pranks. But he also shared Santa’s curiosity, albeit less intellectually, always egging on his vices to see what would happen. These two were the duo within the trio. Gaddi held a special place in Santa’s heart until the end, he often sees glimmers of the man within Jack. 

As it would continue to be, Santa’s pride was his downfall. 

Santa’s closest friends were aware of and even participated in his killings but kept their mouths shut, they did plenty of sanctioned raping and pillaging when they were off a-viking anyway. But after decades of enjoying their lifestyles, starting families, etc. Santa began to get sloppy. Not wanting to be held responsible himself, Einráði gave the village evidence of his guilt. 

In turn Santa razed the village, killing everyone he knew and loved and fleeing into the wilderness with the elves and his Heldeer, becoming a sort of urban legend until the fateful night of the bet.