Shadow Slave: Immortal Ice

[The First Seal is broken.]

[Awakening dormant powers…]

"Agh!" Eirwen cursed, clutching his chest as he nearly collapsed. The sensation was like being stabbed in the heart, but it was far worse, yet less painful. Every ounce of his being seemed to be undergoing a transformation. His bones cracked, then immediately mended. Muscle fibres tore and reattached, his body growing stronger with each passing second. His emotions, his very perception, sharpened. He felt something moving in him, an unfamiliar blob of darkness that seemed to consume his inner organs and coat them. His body grew tougher, more robust, as if it was forged anew. But Eirwen did not feel pain. No, it felt good, euphoric even.

A wave of heat surged through him, only to be quickly replaced by a biting cold. The areas affected by this strange blend of heat and coldness grew stronger and better.

As the sensation washed over his eyes, he saw something; a boundless sea of black flames stretching endlessly before him, with a brilliant white star shining brightly in the sky. It was as though hell and heaven had mixed together: darkness and flames at the bottom, and a bright, holy sun at the top.

This was his Soul Sea. His true Soul Sea.

But if this was his true Soul Sea, then what was it that he entered in his Trial? Why did his Soul Sea suddenly evolve and change?

Eirwen didn't have an answer for now, so he decided to simply look around.

He stood up and took a step forward, watching as the black flames parted, clearing a path for him to walk.

"My soul is beautiful," Eirwen chuckled, amusement in his voice as he looked up at the bright star.

But then he saw something.

"Huh…" he mumbled, his eyes locking onto an image in the distance, somewhere behind the star.

Narrowing his eyes, he focused on the star, noticing that its brilliance didn't blind him whatsoever. Behind it, something shifted, a colossal black shape, heavily contrasting against the star's radiant white glow.

Suddenly, his heart nearly stopped as something began to crawl forward from behind the star.

Five clawed hands emerged, gripping the radiant sun without hesitation, completely unfazed by the searing flames.

Eirwen stumbled back, his eyes widening as his last breath turned into a knot in his throat.

What emerged from behind the sun was the same Creature he had seen at the end of his Trial. The same colossal monstrosity with a horse's skull and five elongated arms.

"Don't be afraid, boy. It's nothing more than a tool I used to get here," a chorus of voices echoed around him, gradually merging into one deep, mysterious tone.

Eirwen glanced to his left and nearly leapt back in shock akin to a startled cat. Leviathan was there again.

Leviathan gently moved His clawed hand through the air, as if grasping space itself, pulling the monstrous figure downward.

The creature descended and landed a few meters away from Eirwen and Leviathan. Its massive skull loomed so close that Eirwen half-expected his heart to leap out of his chest. Yet, strangely, it wasn't as terrifying as before. Its incomprehensible aura was gone. It was akin to giant Nightmare Creature now, terrifying yes, but not to the point it makes his brain melt and body go numb.

And only now did Eirwen realize that Leviathan's crushing pressure was also gone.

Leviathan Himself, meanwhile, stepped forward and placed his hand on the monster's skull.

"Go, finish all of this," the mysterious figure chuckled, waving his hand and effortlessly forcing Eirwen out of the Soul Sea.

'Did he just force me out of MY OWN Soul Sea?!' Eirwen cursed in bewilderment.

[Awakening Aspect Ability...]

But all his frustration, anger, and fear quickly gave way to excitement once more. Why should he be scared at this point? Leviathan didn't seem to want to harm him- at least for now-, and the creature that had terrified him was nothing but a tool Leviathan used.

Still, if that thing appeared in front of his bed in the middle of the night, his heart would probably stop.

[Aspect Ability acquired!]

[Aspect Ability Name: Frozen Reflection]

Eirwen was satisfied, it did sound like something mysterious and powerful.

Just as he was about to summon his Runes to examine the description of his ability, the cosmos around him began to shift. Stars and threads drifted away, fading into nothingness, leaving the void empty.

He arched a brow.

'Were these theatrics really necessary?' he rolled his eyes as the Spell's voice echoed all around him.

[All power has a price.]

Eirwen's brows lifted as he gazed forward, watching the Runes form in front of him. He wasn't afraid it would be something horrible or crippling. He knew that whatever it was, it would work in his favour.

[You have received a Flaw.]

[Your Flaw is: Death's resentment]

Flaw Description: [You cannot die no matter what. Death does not wish to see you anymore.]

Eirwen's eyes widened, his face remaining expressionless for a moment.

"Bahahahahha-" he erupted into laughter. After enduring so much pain and fear, seeing something like this was enough to send him into a fit of maniacal laughter.

He leaned down on his knee and clutched his bare abdomen, his laughter still echoing through the endless void of nothingness.

Weirdly, even without any source of light he could see himself.

---

Somewhere deep in his Soul Sea Leviathan looked up in confusion at the young man laughing

---

"Oh, good God haha" Eirwen mumbled after calming down and wiping a tear from the corner of his eye.

All of sudden the Spell interrupted him.

[Wake up, Archon of Wrath and Mercy!]

The black void spun and disappeared

---

Eirwen opened his eyes after a moment, but what greeted him wasn't Gale and Andromeda rushing to his side, proud and happy for him. No, it was his door, flying off its hinges and hurtling toward him at an unimaginable speed.

"What the fuc—!?" Eirwen barely managed to scream before the door slammed into him, exploding into splinters.

Less than a second later, before the shards could even fall or sink into Eirwen's marble skin, a figure blurred forward, wielding a long silver spear.

"Ga—" Two letters were all Eirwen could manage to utter before the tip of the spear thrust into his throat, nearly ripping his head off.

His eyes widened as he saw the figure holding the spear. It was Gale, his face tense and eyes narrowed, burning with murderous intent.

Eirwen's eyes shot upward as he desperately tried to clutch his neck. His fingers wrapped around the spear's sharp blade, nearly severing them.

Blood spilled from his mouth, throat, and fingers as he attempted to speak, but all that escaped were gurgles and chokes as his own blood pooled in his mouth.

Gale's eyes went wide, and his face drained of color as he realized it was Eirwen, not a Nightmare Creature that replaced him. If there hadn't been a spear in his throat, Eirwen would have let out a string of curses at his teacher.

He gripped the blade harder, trying to pull it out, which only resulted in him cutting his index finger clean off.

The pain was horrifying and blinding, but just as the finger fell to the ground, a new one began to grow. First, a bone extended from the wound, followed by nerves, muscle, flesh, and finally, skin.

But both Gale and Eirwen were too preoccupied to notice the mesmerizing process of regeneration.

Gale yanked the spear out and dismissed it before quickly kneeling beside Eirwen on the mattress, pressing his hand against his young master's throat, blood spilling between his fingers.

"Holy fuck! I'm so sorry I didn't know it was you… There was a horrifying fucking pressure coming out of the room, so I assumed you failed," He mumbled while applying pressure on Eirwen's throat, clearly worried and scared, "Fuck fuck fuck what do I do?!"

Eirwen narrowed his eyes, glaring at Gale in annoyance, biting down on his lips to stifle the scream threatening to escape.

With a swift motion, he pried Gale's hand away as he felt the wound in his neck begin to close. The muscles reconnected, the fractured bone regrew, and everything else that had been torn or damaged healed. The process wasn't exactly painful, it was ticklish and pleasant in a weird way even.

He took in a deep breath, panting, his hands clawing on his neck as the pain slowly faded, "Motherfucker why was killing me your first fucking reaction?!"

Gale looks down at Eirwen in clear confusion for multiple seconds before mumbling, "Am I sleeping...?"

So much stuff happened in the last ten seconds that Gale could not believe his mind. First the suffocating pressure coming out of the room, then also Eirwen healing a wound that should have blown his head off.

Eirwen glares daggers at him and scoffs, "No, unfortunately you are here in the Waking World."

His teacher seemed to be thinking for a good second before chuckling, "Yeah that's you for sure. I thought you got possessed or something, but I guess that really is you…" Gale said embarrassingly. He sighed and leaned back; the sheets were soaked with blood. The splinters from the door lying all over the room too.

---

After calming down, Eirwen sighed and glanced around his room. It felt nice to be back. Everything was the same -of course, it wasn't like he'd been gone for years. The room remained unchanged, except for the doorless frame. Eirwen's brow twitched as he stared at it.

"You seriously cou-?! Ugh nevermind" he groaned and scooted off the bed. Gale looked at him in confusion -his eyes clueless- but followed.

He coughed and tried to lighten the mood while fighting the urge to ask how exactly Eirwen had healed that wound. "Congratulations, my boy, you're officially a sleeper now," he boomed in his usual loud tone, which only irritated Eirwen further.

Eirwen walked towards his private bathroom, which was connected to his room, "Yeah, the winter solstice is in a couple months. We will have to ,at least, double our lessons"

Gale nodded in response, a grin wide on his face, "You're even paler now, and how did your hair grow this mu-"

Thud

Eirwen couldn't hear the rest of Gale's words as he slid the bathroom door shut with force. 'Maybe a bit too much force' he thought as the door nearly blew through the wall. He cursed under his breath and walked toward the mirror, the lights automatically flickering on.

His bare feet slapped against the white tiles as he untied his sweatpants and undressed.

"My hair really did grow…" he murmured, leaning closer to the mirror, studying his bloodied reflection.

His throat and chin were covered in dried blood, giving him a strangely captivating, almost charming appearance. On his neck was no scar left, even though Gale tore through it not so long ago.

His face was sharp and defined with an angular jaw and high cheekbones. Even his nose was straight and narrow. Yet he still held a more feminine quality. With his hair grown a few inches, he looked even more delicate. If not for his tall and toned body, someone might have mistaken him for a beautiful girl. Maybe it was for his flawless porcelain skin, with no facial hair whatsoever. Or maybe it were his thin eyebrows and long eyelashes. He didn't really care, he was beautiful and that's all he needed.

A moment later he moved his long, bony fingers up, touching the corners of his eyes. They seemed to have changed colours all of a sudden. Before they were bright green, but now they looked more golden and brighter. Just like his hair that turned much paler. Now instead of dirty-blonde they were straight up blonde with a few brighter strands scattered throughout.

"I look angelic" Eirwen laughed and stepped back, summoning his Runes.

Name: Eirwen

True Name: Archon of Wrath and Mercy

Rank: Dreamer

Cursed Core: Dormant

Sacred Core: Dormant

Souls consumed: [12/500]

Souls satisfied: [0/500]

Memories: [Whistle of Dread], [Bone Gauntlets]

Echoes: ----

Attributes: [Lucky Bastard], [The child of Gods]

Aspect: [Chained Ice]

Aspect Ability: [Frozen Reflection]

The Runes continued to flow, but Eirwen focused on those describing his Aspect Ability, disregarding the strange Cursed and Sacred Cores he seemed to possess. He'd ask Leviathan about those later.

Aspect Ability Description: [You can copy up to two moves in any Reflective surface. You grow stronger in coldness.]

'I need to talk to Leviathan after I wash myself. Somehow, I don't feel any fatigue anymore' he chuckled and walked towards the shower.