Alien Xmas

"…and laying a finger aside of my nose,

I gave him a nod and up the chimney I rose!

I sprang to my sleigh, gave my flight team a whistle,

and away we all flew like the down of a thistle.

But I gave him a shout, ere we drove out of sight,

Merry Christmas to all…"

And to all a good night.

-Yay! -Yes! Ho ho ho ho!

- -Oh, would you look at that.

-Time for bed, little ones. - Aww…

Come on, Santa, one more story.

I don't think so. What would your parents say?

They won't care.

-We won't tell. -Please?

Ho ho ho ho! You must have heard every Christmas story there is by now.

Although, there is one tale you may not have heard.

Honestly, it's kind of…

crazy.

You kids wouldn't want to hear a crazy Christmas story, would you?

Yeah!

Once upon a time, there was a race of aliens known as Klepts.

Long ago, they were colorful creatures from a beautiful planet,

-but they grew greedy. -Ah!

They plundered all their home planet

-had to offer… -Hmm. Hmm. Hmm?

-…and their color faded away. -Aw…

So, they took to the stars…

moving from galaxy to galaxy,

swindling, stealing and snatching whatever they could.

The poor Klepts had no concept of kindness or joy.

All they ever felt was greed.

But the more the Klepts had,

the more they wanted.

They even stole from one another!

-Ah! -X was the smallest of the Klepts,

-but he was also the sneakiest. -Ah.

Ha! Ah.

- But no matter how clever X was… -Huh?

-…he was still the smallest. -

- -

Huh? Aw…

X was an excellent thief…

-but because of his size… -Ah!

…the other Klepts

-never took him seriously. -

Aw…

The Klepts' supreme leader was a nasty piece of work,

-mean, greedy, and dangerous. -

Her name was Z.

And Z was about to reveal

-her most diabolical plan yet. -

Klepts, a fabulous treasure is within our grasp.

This is Earth,

the most stuff-filled planet we've ever seen.

-Alone and unguarded… -Ooh!

…in the vastness of space.

You almost feel sorry for it.

Almost.

We will build the ultimate weapon: the Gyrotron!

Ooh!

At the magnetic North Pole of the planet,

-it will obliterate the planet's gravity. -

All the stuff on the surface will float out into space,

where we will be waiting to snatch it up.

We will stuff their stuff into our stuff chambers,

and then their stuff will be our stuff!

One of you will go to Earth and assemble the Gyrotron.

And let me remind you that failure will be…

frowned upon.

Any volunteers?

X knew that if he could steal more stuff

-than any Klept in Klept history… -Hmm!

…they would finally be forced to take him seriously.

You're volunteering?

I was hoping for someone a bit taller.

- -Oh…

Hmph!

Okay, the job is yours, little Klept.

Impress me.

- -

- -

-Huh? Ooh! -

X had been assigned a Semi-Automatic-Multi-Tasking-Unit,

-or SAMTU. -

And little did X realize just how helpful SAMTU would turn out to be.

Mmm! Ow! Ooh!

- -

Ow!

- -

Of all the places to build their weapon of doom,

the Klepts chose the North Pole…

right in the heart of Christmas Town…

just two days before Christmas Eve!

And who would be the first line of defense

against this alien invasion?

A handful of elves.

Hold still, let me put your ribbon on.

Now, say "ah."

Mom, help!

Try your father's auto-bow.

Point it at the puppy and push the button.

His gadgets are great… mostly.

Yay! You look perfect!

-Mom, we can't give this one away. -

Look at those eyes.

-Giving is what Christmas is all about. -I know.

But she's such a good girl!

When X laid eyes on Christmas Town,

he didn't see magic and wonder.

He only saw all the stuff

he could steal.

Oh! Ooh!

Whoopee!

Huh? Oh!

It's in a Klept's nature to steal,

-so, Christmas Town was a paradise for X. -Wow!

As SAMTU led him to the precise spot where they would build the Gyrotron,

X couldn't help but pilfer.

Oh… Hmm.

Oh… Ah!

Mmm-hmm. Whoo-hoo!

X didn't know it, but he had arrived on a particularly special night.

On the other side of town, I was presenting our newest invention.

You're on, big guy. Three, two…

Hello-ho-ho, everyone!

And thank you for coming.

I know how busy you all are, but you're my family,

and I have something incredible to show you.

Everybody loves a baby! They're soft and cute.

So, it's no wonder the planet is bursting with more kids than ever before.

Friends, we need a faster method

for delivering gifts.

I had a vision, a dream!

I saw us bringing gifts to every girl and boy on the face of the Earth

at the speed of light!

Ooh!

And with the help of our lead mechanic, Obie,

-we have made my dream a reality! -

Elves, snowmen, citizens of the North Pole,

may I present to you,

the deluxe, fully loaded,

gravity-defying Santa Super Sleigh!

I named it myself.

-My dad made that! -Yes, he did.

-Boo! -Boo!

Okay, here we go.

Ooh!

Ho-ho-ho-ho!

-Hi! Oh! Oh, that's not good. -

- -Oh!

-Whoa! -I have a feeling that this year

will be the most crackerjack Christm-- Ahh!

-Whoa! Santa! Watch out! -

Not good.

Let me turn the… No! Ah! Whoa!

Okay, okay, no, it's okay. No, no, no, no.

Santa?

Ho-ho-ho-ho-ho!

Santa, are you okay?

Well, that wasn't part of the plan, but it was fun!

Everyone okay?

Sorry, the light-speed booster still isn't quite up to--

Christmas Eve is tomorrow!

How will we deliver gifts without the Super Sleigh?

There's plenty of time!

By midnight tomorrow, the sleigh will be in perfect working order.

I have full faith in Obie.

Okay.

Yeah.

-Are you okay? -I'm fine. I just--

I really gotta get back to work.

Wait, you're not coming home?

I can't, I… I'm sorry.

The sleigh is my responsibility, and I can't let Santa down.

But I'll be home later to tuck you in. I promise.

Okay, I understand.

Noelle, I'm… I'm trying my best.

We know you are.

I'll make it up to her. I'll find her the best Christmas gift ever this year.

The only gift she wants is you.

You get that sleigh fixed and come home to us.

- -

-Huh? Oh… Mmm… -

Huh?

Ooh!