Shadow Slave: Immortal Ice

"I've had enough of you ugly bastards!" Eirwen roared, already swinging his arm sideways before the hammer had even fully materialized.

The six imps rushed toward him, their maws snapping open and claws ready to tear him apart. But before any of them could even get close, Eirwen's arm was already swinging the hammer, his muscles on fire.

The hammer's design was slightly different after he obtained it, much like his armour. It was slightly bigger; its shape became sharper and more evil. The design of the weapon now exuded a menacing, almost demonic aura. It looked like something a soldier of hell would use.

The hammer tore through the air like a speeding train, pushing everything in its path before finally colliding with the six Nightmare Creatures mid-air.

Eirwen felt his muscles strain, bulging under the immense force he poured into the swing. The sheer power behind the strike sent a burning ache through his arm, threatening to tear it apart, but he ignored it. Even if his arm exploded, it would regenerate anyway.

The first two creatures disintegrated on impact, their bodies bursting into a dark mist of flesh and shattered bone. The remaining four were launched backward, their forms colliding mid-air with such force that they crumpled together into a single, grotesque disk of mangled corpses. The sickening crunch of breaking bones and tearing flesh sounded around him.

The Spell echoed in his mind, announcing his six new kills as his grip on the hammer nearly slipped. Without a moment wasted, he shot his free hand up, catching the shaft before it could fully escape his grasp.

His muscles burned from the sheer force of his own swing, but he gritted his teeth and dug his heel into the cracked stone beneath him, steadying himself as much as he could for his next move.

With a guttural roar, he forced every ounce of his brutal strength into pushing back against the wild inertia. He could've let his body spin with the momentum, but that risked striking Andromeda, and at this speed, a single hit would obliterate her.

Gritting his teeth, he grounded his stance, muscles straining as he yanked the hammer back under control, preparing for the next wave of incoming nightmares. The bones and muscles in his shoulders and arms tore, but a moment later they were back to normal.

'I need to move forward or I might hit them accidentally,' he concluded immediately.

Straining his legs, he exploded forward, ignoring Andromeda's sudden scream as he shot through the new battlefield.

One little issue immediately struck him, though. Killing Nightmare Creatures didn't reward him with Essence like killing Awakened did. That meant he couldn't rely on a steady supply of Essence to keep going. He gritted his teeth. He'd have to improvise.

Maybe diving headfirst into a horde of Nightmare Creatures wasn't the smartest move when he needed to conserve Essence, but there was something he wanted to test.

If it worked, then Essence wouldn't be an issue anymore, and he'd finally be able to summon the [Whistle of Dread], something that could be of great help. Even thought that was his first Memory he received, he only had one real chance to use it which annoyed him slightly.

Eirwen's eyes widened, his vision narrowing as everything except the Nightmare Creatures blurred into the background. His instincts were as sharp as ever. He hadn't been this focused since his first Trial, and this was a feeling he enjoyed.

Crashing into the group of Imps like a comet, Eirwen wasted no time diving into the slaughter.

It was his first time using a war hammer, but after the fight with Bulldog, the movements came naturally to him. His Aspect didn't grant him perfect mastery over the weapon just from fighting the Awakened for five minutes, but it was more than enough for these mindless monsters.

With each passing second, more explosions echoed behind him, but Eirwen didn't flinch. His eyes wide and focus sharp, locked entirely on the monsters in front of him. Whatever chaos was unfolding behind him wasn't any of his issue.

Kicking the hammer up that was dug into the ground and a Nightmare Creatures chest, Eirwen slammed it into an Imp's jaw, sending the creature flying back into another group that was already closing in. He heard the rush of more creatures behind him.

There were two more Imps behind him, but he didn't bother trying to stop the hammer's arc as it shot upwards after he initially kicked it . Instead, he smoothly stepped to the side, changing his stance just in time to let the hammer complete a full vertical 320-degree swing. Both Imps were obliterated, crushed into the ground without a chance to react as it slammed into them.

'How do I even do this?' he asked himself, thinking about what he had planned as the Spell echoed in his mind again.

With no time to think, Eirwen dragged the hammer along the ground, its heavy head scraping the stone as he swung it directly into the chest of another creature lunging at him. The impact was brutal, crushing its ribcage and sending it crashing to the ground, its body crumpled and motionless

Dirt and stone exploded in all directions as the hammer smashed into the Nightmare Creature's torso. A sickening crunch rang out and Eirwen huffed, a surge of adrenaline coursing through him.

[You have slain an Awakened Beast: Elfenlied's spawn]

[You have consumed a Soul]

[Devour the Flesh for more]

Luck was on his side as he skillfully sidestepped and outmaneuvered most of the Spawns. Only a few managed to land shallow blows, but the wounds were minor and easy to heal, so he wasn't losing much Essence.

He swung his war hammer around like an infernal demon, sometimes gripping it with just one hand, other times using both, crushing everything it hit into a bloody pulp. By now the ground around him was filled with mangled and grotesque corpses.

It was almost absurd how three mere Dreamers were holding their own against a horde of Awakened Nightmare Creatures. And so well too.

Well at least Eirwen assumed they were doing as well as him. He was too focused to care about what was happening to Seraphiel and Andromeda at the moment.

The slaughter was going relatively smoothly for now, but there was a problem.

His Flaw was constantly working to keep his body at peak performance, meaning the longer he fought, the harder his Flaw had to work to maintain his condition. Yes, that meant he couldn't really get exhausted as long as he had Essence, but it also meant he was burning through it faster. And that wasn't as great as it might have sounded, especially for someone like Eirwen who would simply collapse forever if he run out of Essence.

'Now or never,' Eirwen groaned and shot forward once more, dragging the hammer along.

Whipping his free hand forward, Eirwen grabbed one of the creatures by the neck and yanked it toward him. In a furious motion, he headbutted its face repeatedly until it went limp, the sickening crunch of bone echoing in his skull.

His own forehead cracked open, blood streaming down his face, but it quickly healed as the warm trickle blurred his vision for a moment, mixing with the dirt and sweat.

With a slightly disgusted grimace, Eirwen opened his mouth wide, his sharp canines gleaming in the dim orange light that flickered throughout the cavern. He yanked the Nightmare Creature closer, and with a guttural growl, he sank his teeth into its neck, tearing a chunk of its grey flesh off. The horrible taste lingered, but he didn't stop, biting deeper as the creature's dark blood soaked into his mouth and trickled down his chin.

But nothing happened.

Eirwen cursed under his breath, but before he could react further, a swarm of imps descended upon him from every direction. Their sharp, dagger-like fangs and claws sank deep into his flesh, some digging into his sides, others puncturing his neck, and some even implanting into his head. The pain was intense, but he gritted his teeth and pushed it aside.

"Fuck! Leviathan, where the fucking hell are you?!" he roared, his voice raw and furious, his grip tightening around the dead corpse he had tried to devour.

The war hammer slipped from his hand with a heavy thud, crashing to the ground. For a moment, he stood there, weapons gone, surrounded by the relentless swarm.

'Devour it, child. I am Leviathan, all-devouring, and you, Archon of Wrath and Mercy, are a part of me. Open your mouth wide and let the depths take it,' the voices echoed in his mind.

Eirwen's brow twitched as he fought to stay on his feet, the weight of the Nightmare Creatures pressing down on him, their claws and fangs sinking deep into his flesh and tearing pieces away. He stubbornly refused to buckle.

With a groan, he painfully shifted his free arm -dragging an imp that was latched onto it- and moved it upward. His fingers closed around the lifeless corpse that he had tried to eat earlier with a strained grip.

Dark blood dripped down his lips as his eyes widened in anger.

Something in his Cursed Core trembled as he moved the corpse to his mouth once again.

It was as if something deep within him snapped. His vision blurred; his senses overwhelmed by a primal hunger that surged through him. The instinct to feed and consume surged through him.

Eirwen pushed the pain aside, focusing only on his hunger.

His mouth opened wider, and wider still, until his cheeks began to tear with a sickening snap. With an almost primal hunger, he shoved the corpse into his mouth, pulling it in as though it were nothing, until it vanished into the depths of his body. A strange sound filled his mind, like the roar of a raging ocean, distant and yet still deafening.

[You have obtained an Attribute]

[You have Devoured an Awakened Beast: Elfenlied's spawn]

[You grow stronger!]

As soon as the Spell finished speaking, Eirwen felt a surge of Essence flood his Cores, filling them halfway.

He grinned wickedly, his mouth returning to its normal shape. The sense of satisfaction was overwhelming, he felt incredible. The initial disgust of swallowing a whole Nightmare Creature melted away as he felt power in him again.

The Imps continued screeching and tearing at him and his armour, their claws and fangs sinking deeper as Eirwen fought to throw them off.

His body burned with both anger and excitement, but the strange strain inside his Cursed Core was still there, gnawing at him. Each second, the pressure grew, pushing him closer to something weird.

Boom

But before he could fully dwell on that feeling, a surge of blinding white flames erupted from behind him with a loud explosion, eviscerating everything in their path and engulfing him. The heat was intense, but strangely, he remained mostly unharmed.

The flames only felt mildly hot for Eirwen, their intense heat pushing everything away that didn't turn to ash on impact. The force of it sent his enemies scattering everywhere.

His flesh and bone snapped back into place as he groaned, pushing himself to his feet. With a growl, he grabbed the shaft of the hammer with his right hand, ready to continue the fight. Of course, there was no time to relax. The Spawns that didn't die from the flames were already back on their feet. And mad as hell too.

"Are you alright!?" Andromeda's voice reached him, filled with concern. Apparently, she and Seraphiel already fully cleared their side of the battlefield.

It seemed they'd handled their part rather well, leaving only him to deal with the remaining Nightmare Creatures.

After a brief moment of thought, Eirwen leaned back, flexing the muscles in his legs. With a grunt, he rotated his hips, transferring the built-up energy and force from his legs up into his right arm. In one fluid motion, he hurled the hammer forward with explosive strength, sending it crashing into the remaining Spawns before him. The air seemed to crackle with the energy and force behind impact, the sheer force of the blow enough to send the horde flying.

Not wasting a second, Eirwen blurred forward like a streak of lightning, his rapid movement kicking up dirt and stone in a whirlwind behind him. The ground seemed to tremble as he surged ahead. Inside his mouth there was a whistle.

Dark, reflective, metallic claws extended from his nails as Eirwen shot forward, his eyes wide and shining with an intense golden light. He moved so quickly that the air around him seemed to tremble.

As soon as he moved a horrifying shriek echoed through the cavern, causing everyone but Eirwen to freeze in place, paralyzed by the sound