Ok, lot's of actiony stuff and angst in this chapter. All the good stuff.

Envy: this is actually the second to last chapter... the last chapter is the epilouge.

And also, as I said in Double Edged Blades, I am going to camp for two weeks and though it has internet I will be very busy so I might not be able to update that often... That's why I'm updating now before I leave tommorow.

Liz: REVIEW!

It didn't take long before the scene through the window shifted from beautiful relief to horror and terror. Armored soldiers were in the city, alot of Central looked like it had been decimated by an earthquake, and the ship I was on was shooting down on the city.

I had never been in a war. I had only ever heard of the Ishbalan civil war. I never saw any of it for myself. The fights I had been in were against small groups or just a few other people. But here, I couldn't move my eyes fast enough over the destruction to take it all in.

The oddest part was, the ship I was in seemed to be using alchemy to fire. How could a human use alchemy? Could simply studying about it gift you with the ability to use it? Was it Eckhart? Was she on this ship?

My fists clenched at the thought.

I wasn't sure how long I waited in the ship just watching but it seemed like hours. Below in Central command I caught a glimpse of Armstrong (His sparkles can be seen from space!) and then the bright orange flames of a familiar flame colonel. Several moments later I felt a jolt as the ship was hit by something. Looking over to my right I saw a coloum of stone had slammed into the ship and three figures were running up it.

Ed, Al and Mustang.

Grinning I ran to where they were headed, narrowly avoiding a few armored gaurds. There was a hole in the side of the rocket that I appeared through.

"Liz" Mustang realized, his eyes widening slightly. "You're back too."

"Yes sir, Colonel Flame" I grinned, saluting. "Or I guess you were a Brigadere General the last time I saw you."

"Nice to meet you in person Liz" Al smiled and I was suddenly reminded that he had no memory.

"Yeah..." I forced a smile. "We'll have to talk later." I turned to Ed. "Glad you made it."

"Hey I promised didn't I?" Ed grinned.

"I'll gaurd the entrance Fullmetal" Mustang told Ed. "That's what I came for. Go on inside."

"Right" all three of us nodded in unison and hurried into the ship.

"I always knew you two were alive" I heard Mustang murmur behind us and I smiled.

"Yeah... we don't die quite so easily."

"Ok, Al" Ed said as we came to a stop for a minute. "Take control of as many armored bodies as you can and get to the cockpit... that's where Liz and I are going."

"Right brother." and Al took off in the opposite direction.

As Ed and I hurried twoards the cockpit I worked up the guts to ask "Ed... what happened..."

He didn't turn to look at me as he sighed. "I'm... I'm sorry Liz...but... well I guess you may have deduced by the gate being open that... both Envy and Hoenhiem were transmuted to create the portal."

I swallowed and nodded. I had expected this... I had known it would happen. But that didn't stop my chest from feeling like it was being crushed by a lead weight. "Let's... let's just focus on stopping Eckhart."

"...Yeah..." Ed murmured.

We ran the rest of the way in silence. I decided to take Truth's advice from earlier and let my mind go blank... not thinking of anything. Not wanting to face any form of dream or reality. Just staying in empty subconcious.

"You'll need to have a clear head when you go up against Eckhart" Truth told me. "Not a blank one."

"That's an oxymoron." I shot back.

"If you try and keep your mind blank the thoughts your forcing out will still press at your conciousness. You'll be focused on keeping the thoughts out and not at the task at hand. That's dangerous little human" Truth lectured.

I wished that he was flesh and blood so I could punch him.

"Fantastic" I growled. "Now stop pressing at my conciousness you annoying bastard."

We came to a stop just outside the open cockpit door. I could see the top of Eckhart's hair just over the seat in the center.

"This world is strange... nothing like I'd imagined." she murmured.

"Do you think that has anything to do with the fact that you're blowing shit up?" I asked iceily stepping into the room. Ed closed the door behind us.

"You're wrong Eckhart..." Ed growled. "People here are just like you, live the same, die the same."

I noticed Eckhart twist slightly in her seat and I moved subconciously in front of Ed. Then with a feral yell she darted from behind her seat and sent a giant black tentical twoards us. It knocked me hard into the opposite wall sending me to my knees. A sharp pain pierced my abdomen and I was forced to stay on the ground. I looked up to see the twisted looking Eckhart had her black tentacle wrapped around Ed's arm.

"Liz" Ed called, worried.

I waved my hand dismissivly "I'm... fine..."

Ed turned back to glare at Eckhart "There's one thing I want to know. Why did you start this attack! I thought the point was to use the wepons of this world to conquer your own! So why would you wage war here!"

"I have to."

"But why?"

"Because I fear it!" Eckhart yelled. "Opening a portal to a new world was exciting at first! A utopia that could make us greater! But then I realized how different it was from our own! I got scared. This world is far to strong to be trusted! I have to destroy it now before it conquers us!"

"That's rediculous!" Ed snapped. "We have no reason to conquer your world!"

"How can you be sure?"

"Because we're humans like you!"

"Liar!" Eckhart screeched. "How can you call yourself humans. That shape shifter! That thing wasn't human! Inside you're different! You're monsters!"

"Wrong." I murmured standing on my feet. "Thanks for the hit... it really cleared my head." I stepped forward, staring calmly at Eckhart. "We're not human? That's what you think?"

"When I look at you I see animals! That's why I can take your life!" Eckhart smirked.

"Animals." I repeated, cocking my head to the side, laughing softly. "Eckhart... your sad you know that? You should look at yourself... see what you've become. When I first came to your world I found it bizarre seeing the faces of all the people I knew but they didn't know me. I thought it was strange. But I've lived with the people over there and they are the same." I sighed. "But you're not. Inside we're monsters... ha, that's a laugh. You're the real monster inside. Killing because you're just afraid. But now the outside reflects the inside doesn't it. You should see yourself right now, you really should."

"You remind me of someone, this lady called Dante was afraid of death... she was afraid of what was on the other side, what would happen... so she stole bodies from others, implanting her soul into their bodies, over and over again. But her soul got weaker and weaker and eventually she'll die." I looked at Eckhart. "In the process she's created wars for her cause, created homunculi to find philosiphers stones made out of human lives. Homunculi were what we considered monsters. Envy was one of those." I swallowed. "But Dante, the one who looked normal, was the real monster the whole time. And she can't run away from death forever... and you can't run away from your fears, by killing us. There will always be someone else you blame for what happens... but eventually it will all come back to you."

"No YOU'RE the monster!" Eckhart released Ed's arm and hurled the tentacle at me. I drew my knives with lightning speed and smacked them together, expanding a shield between us. It was good to know I hadn't lost my touch.

"You're spreading despair, you're killing, you're uprooting lives to create your damn perfect race." I growled walking forward. "And you call me the monster? You're the same as Dante. And you know something? I hate that woman more you know."

Eckhart snarled and moved twoards the door,"We're out of time." she opened it to reveal the armored soldiers, the ones I knew Al had taken control of. "You are a decietful monster. Nothing more. That is why I can and will take your life. It's human nature. We can't accept what we don't understand. We fear it, reject it and that is the beggining of war." she smirked wide, thinking that she had one.

"That's only how the narrow minded ones like you think" Ed growled. "Some of us are a little more imaginative."

"Kill them!" Eckhart ordered, waving her hand.

The soldiers didn't move and a smirk broke out onto my face "You're pons just broke... annoying isn't it... I recall Dante having to deal with the same thing."

The armors turned and moved twoards the woman "What?" she flinched back against the wall.

"Alchemy gives us all sorts of abilities." Al said, entering the room. "This is one of mine."

"Don't touch me!" Eckhart yelled. "Get away!"

"Go to Hell" I murmured. "And never come out." I left the room, walking slowly back to where I knew Mustang was.

"A clear head" I mused. "It's kind of nice... too bad it won't last for long."

"A simple state of mind naver does" Truth sighed.

"Liz" Ed murmured coming up by my side. "Are you alright?"

"That's a stupid question Edward Elric" I sighed. "Of course I'm not alright... It's just, for once in my life, I'm good at hiding it."

Back on the deck Mustang was the one to ask "So what now?"

"...I have to take what's left of the soldiers back to their world... and destroy the gate on that side." Ed murmured, clapping his hands together and bending down twoards the platform. "This will get you guys down."

"Wait! Brother no!" Al cried.

I grabbed Ed's shoulder before he could set his hands on the platform and jerked him to his feet "Don't. You. Dare. Touch. That. Platform."

"Liz" he sighed. "You don't have to come... I know you want to be here."

"You promised you wouldn't leave" I told him, eyes narrowed. "Don't you dare. You don't need to go. That would be a crappy ending to this... even more crappy than it already is. Don't leave. Not you too."

"Someone has to destroy the gate." He murmured.

"I told Alphonse Hiedrich" I growled. "He will destroy the gate. We wouldn't be able to use alchemy over there anyway! It's just as efficent." At Ed's widened eyes I sighed. "I don't care what you want to do Edward. But I'm going to get something I want and if that requires knocking you out, tieing you up and dragging you back down there then I will do it and you know it. Don't try to test me either."

There was a pause before Ed started to laugh, placing a hand over his face "Wow... you do know how to make an argument Liz... I'll give you that."

I blinked "This means your staying right?"

"Well" he grinned. "I did promise, didn't I?"

I grinned in return "Damn right you did."

"I will handle the destruction of the gate on this side." Mustang told us. "In the mean time... I guess you three have some catching up to do."

"Yeah" I laughed once. "Just a bit."


Just the epilouge now!

Envy: And then book two will be over.

Liz: Good... it was depressing...

Ed: REVIEW!