[center][color=purple][h2]Sliske Arkilius[/h2][/color][/center]
	Immediately following the drawing of the tarot card for the demons, Sliske's insides began to churn, a feeling he hadn't felt in centuries.  He gripped his stomach and doubled over, opening his mouth as a thick, black sludge poured out and began to take shape as Hohenheim explained exactly what was happening.  Doppelgangers, representing their fears and worries in the real world... but one had to wonder what Sliske was afraid of.  He knew how cheap death was in the Nexus, and he knew that everything was temporary in the grand scheme of things, so what did he have to fear?  

	This was a question he himself was trying to answer as a fireball exploded in his face just as he was spitting out the last of the sludge, a second one following it and knocking him to the floor, black goop now replaced with blood of a similar shade in his coughing.  [color=purple]"Fucking... hell... I WON'T GO OUT ALONE AGAIN!"[/color]  A shot rang out as he staggered upwards, the flesh around his right arm uncoiling and the bones that made up his forearm extending and sharpening.  On closer examination to the damage done to him already, the solid core of the magic explosion had done most of the damage, probably fracturing ribs instead of burning him.  He looked behind him to see the allied Warfather attempting to create enough minions on its own to patch up the hole in its side, and back to the shadow clone, which was even mocking the way the incubus usually gloated.  [color=purple]"Nuns!  Take down my clone's Warfa-"[/color]  His order was interrupted by a hail of bullets piercing everything that was attached to his body, leaving him standing in a fashion reminiscent of a [url=http://vignette3.wikia.nocookie.net/reddeadredemption/images/9/9d/John_Marston's_death.png/revision/latest?cb=20120822093440]certain betrayed outlaw-turned-family-man in his final moments.[/url]

	[color=purple]"Heh... glass fucking cannon..."[/color]  In his final moments of his current life, Sliske decided to attempt to bring someone down with him once again, memories of Ruthria coming back for a brief second as he held out his normal hand.  In this palm, a ball of red energy began to form, quickly growing larger while his reddened vision locked onto a familiar target inside of the lobby:  Tartys.  The ball shot off in her direction, aimed for the small space between her wings, while Sliske fell back.  Life slowly faded from him as his minions engaged the clone, attempting to hack and slash at him as imps began to spawn on both ends.  The incubus' vision blackened and blurred slowly, the sweet embrace of death grabbing hold of him...

	Then it promptly let go as a massive surge of energy swept over Sliske, his wounds patching themselves in mere seconds and life almost forcing the demon to his feet.  Which it kind of did.  Only then did he hear mention of the tarot card called in their favor, and he cracked a wide grin as his eyes were set alight with purple flame once again.  [color=purple]"I think it's time for the real fun to begin."[/color]  

	The clone of Sliske, exhibiting his narcissistic attitude by merely holding off the Battle Nuns attacking it instead of outright killing them, was completely unprepared for the sword of sharp bone coming in and slicing it clean down the middle.  In one fell swoop, the doppelganger was eliminated and Sliske was enlightened to one of his glaring flaws, one that he was intent to change and close a weakness soon.  Next on his hit list were the amazons that were harassing him, and he looked to two of the Nuns as the cloned Warfather was ended by the real counterpart, both shadows fading from existence at once.  In a wordless command, the two split and ran at their targets, one going for one that looked like it was part cat, and the other for the one with the gunblade.

	The Nun facing off against Zyata would continuously run in a serpentine pattern towards her target, ducking and weaving to avoid getting shot.  On her arrival, she would make an attempt to stab at the cat's heart, hoping to end the conflict quickly and return to her master.  The other simply rushed at the other amazon, slashing her way in and hoping to bisect the woman from shoulder to hip in one move with her claws.

	All that was left for Sliske in this long moment was to unleash hell itself.  He stepped into the doorway of the lobby, his right arm returning to normal as a pair of dark clouds formed around his hands.  [color=purple]"The demons have faced their fears, now why don't the Machina and Angels do the same?"[/color]  His arms locked as a sickly purple gas poured out of his palms, his terrifying laugh filling the room like the poison he was gifting to everyone present.  To those who breathed it in and were not of demonic origin, the world would twist and turn, the greatest physical threats known to each victim taking the place of a once trusted ally in their vision.  Adrenaline would start pumping, and the blood of betrayal would soon stain the lobby of Hohenheim's manor.  A grand show indeed, to any willing to watch this carnage.

[center][@Flamelord][@Banana][@The 42nd Gecko][@Ryonara][@Awesomoman64][@KoL][@floodtalon][@TheWindel][@Lucius Cypher][/center][hr][center][color=sienna][h2]Syphax Gallus Aquilus[/h2][/color][/center]
	Syphax had predicted an attempt to jump over him to dodge his charge, and was going to perform an overhead strike with his greatsword to counter this.  He was ready for Ni-Mu's movement, but what he wasn't ready for was the speed at which it was executed.  [color=sienna]"What the-!?"[/color]  He was interrupted by the robot in a bodystocking footstool jumping off his head for an extra boost.  It didn't stop his flight considering how light she was, but it did distract him long enough to misjudge the distance from the nearest wall, causing a late entry into his original plan.  

	He rolled forward midflight and set his feet against the wall, shooting off in sloppier form than he would've liked only to see what were essentially razor blades flying at his wings.  An easy dodge to anyone with his capabilities, really, all he had to do was tuck his wings in and sacrifice part of a controlled flight, rolling to the right as he did this to maintain his path, which lined up to the door of the port-side elevator.  With the drawings of two tarot cards in favor of the Angels, he lighted down in front of the lift, taking a step in and smacking the button before anyone else could get at the door.  It sealed itself just as the world fell away from Syphax, causing a momentary panic in the warrior before he saw a familiar face...

	[color=sienna][url=http://art.ngfiles.com/images/265000/265660_cenaf_snow-owl-harpy.png]"A-Albina!?[/url]  Wha-?  How!?  You got warped like the others!"[/color]  For the lack of room to make use of either his greatsword or crossbow, he drew Infernalbane from its sheathe, the dagger he kept on him at all times.

	[color=thistle]"I did, my love... but he has undone the curse.  You can stop fighting."[/color]

	A distinctly odd emotion for Syphax display, grief came across his face like a tidal wave.  [color=sienna]"Albina, that's not possible, Rufus wouldn't reverse something like that out of the blue."[/color]

	The female harpy moved forward and embraced her former lover, Syphax barely holding onto his steely demeanor.  [color=thistle]"Rufus let us free, we can be together again.  We can start a new life on that mountain you loved... the one you proposed to me on."[/color]  This broke the male, jagged sobs coming from him while he and his fiance embraced.  For a moment, everything here seemed real, like the Knight of the Southern Winds hadn't been fighting for all this for the last decade.

	But he remembered the vision of Rufus destroying everything he ever loved, the life he had lived before... it took him a long moment with his face buried in the familiar hair of his beloved, but he remembered.  He lifted his head, tears clearing up after a short moment.  [color=sienna]"Albina, you were my life before the harpy race was destroyed, and you will be once I find a way to bring everyone back... but for now, I need to fight for that."[/color]  He pulled back just as the illusion began to fade, the whole reason he participated in this war renewed within him.  Just before she was gone, he stole a kiss from her, the sweet taste of her lips once more invigorating him as the world came back.

	The elevator doors slid open with a fitting ding, and frigid air filled the small room...

[center][@KoL][@Lonewolf685][/center][hr][center][color=brown][h2]Marquis[/h2][/color][/center]
	Marquis looked up as the sprinkler system kicked on as the carpet caught on fire, suppressing the fire in time for the robot to move to the sword and pick it up off the ground, his singular eye squinting at the captive.  [color=brown]"Very well, Alexi... you are quite the strange case, aren't you?"[/color]  He ran a background check on the woman while he spoke, the name coming up in the Machina's files as a mental warrior with an affinity for the cold.  Certainly a supportive boon to the Machina's technical creations, but one had to wonder... why fight with a sword that lit things on fire.

	[color=brown]"Anyhow, from what I've found on you, you're horribly under equipped to be fighting with us, and the use of your powers is heavily limited because of this.  What say we fix that?"[/color]  With a complete change of tone, knowing that the girl was an ally to their cause, Marquis set Bindlebane back down on the table and turn around, moving the sweater to the side and looking up at the various gun parts mounted above his work space.  [color=brown]"What kind of firearm suits a cryomancer..?  Also, what was it you needed to tell Eos?"[/color]

[center][@The 42nd Gecko][/center]