This fairy tale tells about famous Ukrainian warriors Cossacks, about Paradise and hell, Christmas and evil forces. The Devil makes an agreement with St. Peter. If he can capture the best Cossack warrior and hold him until Christmas night, he will be able to wipe all the Cossacks off the map. The script for the movie is based on Sashko Lirnyk's story "About an old Cossack, a Christmas devil, four horns and a Cossacks".

This is a metaphorical story about the tragic and mysterious death of the most powerful poet of 1960s, human rights activist, hero of Ukraine Vasyl Stus and his struggle with the Soviet system. The events of the film unfold during the last attempt by the KGB to seduce the poet with a whimsical "freedom".