Last time several demons attacked Meridian. Will and the Guardians slew most of them, while Ed and Al dealt with the rest. Everyone was shocked to discover that Al had no body, that is, a body of flesh; while Ed had a metal arm and a metal leg. An uncounted demon was about to kill Cornelia, but was saved by Caleb, with the assistance of Martin's latest invention. On with the show!

"In this world, is the destiny of man controlled by some transcendental entity or law? Is it like the hand of God hovering above? At least, it is true that man has no control even over his own will…"

from 'Berserk'

'Or so they say'

from me

Chapter 7: The Other Side of Hell

"Trust me," said Will, "what happened today was only the beginning." "Oh Will Vandom," said Pai-Mey Matoya, "You have no idea just what has begun." The former ninja from Konohamaru stood in a large cavern deep within the hellish dimension that was controlled by The God Hand. Several demons in various shapes and sizes were working all around her on several pieces of scientific equipment Pai-Mey wouldn't even try to understand. In front of Pai-Mey was a large glass sphere that showed the image of Will talking to Ed.

"If only you and your pathetic friends knew what was coming," said Pai-Mey out loud, "You would all be on your knees; begging the masters to put you out of your miserable lives." "That may be true," said a raspy voice from behind Pai-Mey, a voice that sounded like sandpaper. Behind the disgraced ninja stood the demon known as The Dadga Khan. The Dadga Khan wore a red cloak, which covered his cat like face. What could be seen from his hooded face were his purple eyes. Black feline paws grasped a gray staff that was inscribed with demonic symbols.

"I must congratulate you on the success of your device," said Pai-Mey, referring to a large metal construction in the middle of the chamber. The machine was composed of countless gears; cogs; pistons; levers; switches; wires, multi-colored diodes and other mechanical parts that Pai-Mey had never seen before. Connected to the top of the device was what appeared to be a large glowing ruby.

"I would have never conceived of building a device that can send demons directly to another dimension," said Pai-Mey as she admired the machine, "While at the same time disrupting the fabric of reality in other dimensions." "It is beautiful," said The Dadga Khan, "It took me almost 800 years to perfect the design, with another 300 to build the machine."

"And it's power source," said Pai-Mey, her gaze turning to the ruby-like stone at the top, "Is a Philosopher's Stone. How ever did you find it?" "I made this stone," said The Dadga Khan, "They're not that difficult to make. What makes it difficult for humans are the final ingredients; the death of several humans. Many humans find it impossible to take the life of just one human, let alone several. I however am not held back by such restraints."

"If only I had a Philosopher's Stone of my own," said Pai-Mey, "Those disgusting brats wouldn't have stood a chance against me the first time we crossed paths if I had one." "I can make one for you if you desire it," said The Dadga Khan, "They're really not that difficult to create. I shall need to make another one before too long." "How so?" asked Pai-Mey.

"The power of a Philosopher's Stone isn't infinite," said The Dadga Khan, "The more one uses it, the more quickly its power diminishes. I believe my next project shall be to devise a way to manufacture more than one stone at a time."

Just then one of the demons approached The Dadga Khan with a large folder full of papers, the demon had a rectangular body with very thin arms and one eye in its head. "My lord," said the demon, "The report for the initial trial of the dimensional transporter and reality disrupter device is complete and ready for your inspection." "Thank you, Jerry," said The Dadga Khan as he read the report.

"That's what you're calling the thing?" asked Pai-Mey, "A dimensional transporter and reality disrupter?" "Well that is what the device does," said The Dadga Khan, "If you can come up with a more catchy name, I'm all ears." A second demon approached The Dadga Khan, the one had a round body and a triangle shaped head. "My lord," said the demon, "Shall I prepare another batch of grunts for transportation?"

"Not just yet, Mr. Styx," said The Dadga Khan as he finished reading the report, "The targeting scanners are still out of alignment. We sent 30 warriors to deal with The Guardians; only seven arrived within 3 miles of their location. The rest were scattered throughout the planet. If the Guardians are to be eliminated, we need to overwhelm them to do so."

"It shall be done," said the demon called Mr. Styx, it bowed and returned to its duties. "Oh, and Jerry," said The Dadga Khan to the demon Jerry, "The pressure in the EPS turbines nearly reached 2,430 PSI. If the pressure goes above 2,600, the turbines shall rupture and explode. There's also the fact that the core temperature reached 4,800 degrees; it'll melt at 5,500 degrees. If the turbines don't explode, then the device itself shall be destroyed by its own heat."

"Forgive me my lord," said Jerry, "But the device needs more and more power to teleport, even more to disrupt reality. We need more efficient coolant to keep the core temperature down; as for the EPS turbines, we need stronger condensers to contain the pressure." "You shall receive the materials you need," said The Dadga Khan, "But I want the device fully operational within twenty-four hours." "It shall be done," said Jerry as he bowed and returned to his duties.

"It won't be much longer before your revenge is complete," said The Dadga Khan to Pai-Mey. "I'm not so sure," said Pai-Mey, "I've found it unwise to underestimate Will and her pathetic friends. Tell me, what do you think of the Guardians?" "The masters have their reasons for being concerned about the Guardians," said The Dadga Khan, "But I find them of little interest to me, except for the Earth Guardian, the blonde one."

"The one named Cornelia," said Pai-Mey, "What about her?" "You shall find out once she is mine," said The Dadga Khan, "Do what you wish with the others, but I claim the Earth Guardian as mine in body and soul."

The end of chapter 7. Next chapter we shift views back to The Bureau. Please review and I'll see you next time!