Layla

**Layla** was a young desert warrior who became a sacrifice to Lilith.

## Story

### Cursed Destiny

Layla was born daughter to Goetius and was raised in desperate times, her father and herself persecuted by others. Desperate times of course call for desperate measures and to protect his family's future, Goetius made a deal with seven Demon Lords, seeking to put the world back in its place. Deals, however, come with a price, and Layla's Soul was taken away, given to the sealed demon Lilith.

Layla became an unwitting soldier to Goetius's army, but was saved by Shiruka during a battle. Despite having lost most of her personality, Layla bonded with Shiruka as he taught her once again to feel emotions, slightly rekindling the bond she had with her soul. Shiruka vowed to rebuild Layla and make her complete once more, going after Goetius.

As Shiruka killed a Blasphemy-enhanced Goetius, Layla's Soul returned only to see the man she loved in a puddle of her father's blood, in front of a gate that would swallow their world without a sacrifice to seal it. Layla feigned to oppose Shiruka in order to gain enough time to throw herself into the hellish gate, seemingly sacrificing pieces of her existence forever.

### Return of Passion

Layla was later resurrected by Angra Mainyu to serve as a tool to torture and torment Shiruka and his new wife Celena Scarlet, acting as a remainder of his past and failure; however, Shiruka and Celena united in order to take Layloa, as well as the resurrected Elfissia, down, then freeing them from Angra Mainyu's influence and welcoming them by their side.

Layla quickly bonded with Celena due to their similarities as cursed individuals who were found by Shiruka and protected in times of despair; their similar flirtatious and alluring nature caused them to quickly become lovers, Celena encouraging Layla to confess the feelings she always truly had for Shiruka - which she did, becoming one of Shiruka's Demon Empresses as well.

When, one day, Celena and her apprentice Naamah disappeared without a trace, Layla, alongside Elfissia and Runa Uchiha, followed Shiruka to find her. They quickly gathered that Celena and Naamah were detained on a ruinous planet, controlled by Mazokh's puppet dictators. Helped by Kuri-ma Tameka and an escaped but spiritually wounded Celena, Layla and her allies managed to breach into the planet's core and disrupt Mazokh's influence over Naamah, allowing the latter to banish the former, heal Celena, and restore the planet's state. Layla then returned alongside the rest of the group.

## Appearance

Layla is a tan-skinned woman with silver hair and purple eyes, who usually dresses in dark colors. Due to Lilith's influence, she is eerily beautiful and possesses an entrancing body.

## Personality

Layla without her Soul was a silent, meditative and emotionless individual, only acting according to what she was told to do and believe. Shiruka however slowly rebuilt her ties to her Soul, returning her emotions to her and slowly teaching her how to be herself again. Layla is in truth an upbeat and optimistic individual who demands a lot of attention and finds happiness even in desperate situations; she has literally seen hell, so there are few things still able to hurt her. She is extremely passionate and her love for Shiruka - and later for Celena and her other companions - give her the strength to overcome the trials she lived and enjoy a new, happy life.

## Powers

* **Enhanced Agility:** Layla possesses talent when it comes to speed and natural swiftness, although she cannot yet compare to the likes of Elfissia or Celena.
* **Lilith's Caress:** Layla possesses extreme talent for the art of Black Magic and the element of Darkness due to her close connection with Lilith - allowing her to manipulate shadows for stealth purposes, charm people and demons alike, and even instantly kill people with just a touch. This also gives her a naturally enhanced charisma.

* **Demon Empress:** As the partner of a Demon God, Layla possesses enhanced abilities and a great authority over Inferno.

## Storylines

* Also Sprach features Layla as a central character.

* Venatio : True Evil shows her second chance.

## Trivia

* Layla's name means "Child of night" in Arabic; it is of the same etymology as Lilith, something which is obviously not a coincidence.