They call me 'Malina, the sour demon,' but I'm merely one of the formidable demons granted their own realm in hell. AND IT'S TEDIOUS AS HELL! This place is deserted, save for the occasional oddball. However, it's not entirely dreadful. I can escape my irritating sister and indulge in drinks as much as I please! I even have a computer for gaming. Yet, it's dull without a companion to game with, and I absolutely refuse to invite Zdrada!
'Hold on, what's this? DOOMED? I don't remember downloading this game. It's free to play online? This must be a prank! If Zdrada is behind this, I swear...
Malina booted up the game and began creating her avatar. After pondering briefly, she chose the name Sour Demon and dived into the gameplay.
Sour Demon materialized in the game, surveying her surroundings. She found herself on the initial level, which seemed somewhat uninspiring. Nevertheless, she understood that early levels are designed to acclimate newcomers to forthcoming challenges, so she was forgiving. Suddenly, she noticed two players cornered by creatures resembling trolls. She observed as they valiantly fought back, striking a troll before taking cover.
"Geez, I know we've played this game many times, but I swear the number of Trolls increases each time we come here!" one of the players exclaimed.
"Did you even notice our levels, Tucker?" the second player inquired.
Sour Demon glanced around and spotted something nearby. She picked it up and realized she had acquired two laser guns.
"Okay, that's pretty sweet," she remarked, taking aim at the Trolls.
She fires, hitting two trolls before they can shoot at her. Sour Demon rolls to the side, returning fire. The other two players watch as she begins to single-handedly take down the trolls.
"Wow, she's good," the first player remarks.
"Yeah. Many people usually struggle with the first level," the second player adds.
Sour Demon jumps next to them, her back against the wall they're using for cover.
"Nice moves!" the first player compliments.
"Um, thanks," Sour Demon replies, slightly confused.
"Are you new? We haven't seen you around before," the second player inquires.
"I just joined," Sour Demon responds.
"Well, nice to meet you..." The first player starts.
"Tuck, remember how some people play as characters of the opposite gender?" The second player interjects, cutting him off.
"I'm a girl in real life too," Sour Demon informed them.
"Great. I'm FRYERTUCK, T.F. as in Too Fine!" The first player declared.
"I hate creeps," Sour Demon groaned.
"He'll like that. I'm GHOST BOY," The second player sighed.
"SOUR DEMON," She responded in kind.
"So, what brings you to DOOMED?" FryerTuck inquired.
"This game just appeared on my computer, so I decided to have a look. Can anyone tell me what it's all about?" Sour Demon questioned.
"The goal of the game is to collect the Seven Silver Keys to the Apocalypse and reach the 13th level to open a door that leads to the worldwide web," Ghost Boy explained.
"Wait, wait, wait. Are you saying the ultimate goal is to access the worldwide web? Where you can see everything that's online?!" Sour Demon asked, astonished.
"Yep," FryerTuck confirmed, smirking.
"Holy Shit," Sour Demon exclaimed in disbelief.
"Err, you might want to watch what you write. The game may be violent, but the creators have rules," Ghost Boy cautioned her.
"Ugh, I hate rules," Sour Demon complained.
"You didn't read the manual, did you?" Ghost Boy probed.
"Is it even in the manual?" FryerTuck questioned.
"Did you read the manual?" Ghost Boy pressed.
"Dude, nobody reads the manual," FryerTuck asserted.
"Then it's definitely in the manual!" Ghost Boy concluded, glaring.
Back in Hell, Malina couldn't suppress a smirk. It was somewhat amusing.
"Alright, how do we get past this level?" Sour Demon inquired.
"We managed to lower their numbers, but we need to seize that key they're holding!" Ghost Boy exclaimed, pointing.
Sour Demon noticed and nodded. She narrowly avoided a hit when Ghost Boy yanked her down.
"One last tip: don't get hit. If you die at any point in the game, unless you have an extra life, you'll restart from here and have to do it all over again," He advised.
"Great, it's one of those games," Sour Demon muttered before peering over again.
"Okay, I have a plan. You two have played this longer than I have, right?" she asked, receiving nods.
"Alright, draw their fire. I'm going for that key!" she declared.
"Are you sure? I mean..." Ghost Boy began.
"I've played enough Heroes of Might and Magic III to understand that teamwork is crucial! They won't expect a rookie to sneak in while they're preoccupied with the more seasoned players," she asserted before dashing to another cover."She plays Heroes of Might and Magic III?" Ghost Boy asked.
"That old game? Please," FyerTuck said, rolling his eyes.
"Tuck, she can see everything we write. We did invite her to join after she helped us," Ghost Boy reminded him.
"Oops."
They executed Sour Demon's plan, and it worked. The moment she grabbed the key, the Trolls vanished. She walked back to the other two, who were impressed with her prowess.
"Nice job!" FyerTuck exclaimed, offering a high-five.
"So, there are six more of these?" Sour Demon inquired, overlooking Tuck.
"Yep, and it only gets tougher from here," Ghost Boy replied.
"I see. It's not a turn-based strategy game, but it's intriguing so far," She commented.
"Oh! Before we forget. Stay alert in the later levels. There's a high-ranked player named Chaos who's nearly unstoppable. Every player who's encountered him hasn't lasted long. Believe me, we've battled him many times," Ghost Boy warned her.
"Really?" Sour Demon said, raising an eyebrow.
Hours later,
Malina had to admit, the game was engaging. Perhaps she should explore other games. Up to this point, each level introduced something novel, and she was swiftly becoming adept at anticipating the unexpected.
"Whew, finally! The Fifth Key," FryerTuck exclaimed, picking it up.
"And we're only on the 12th level," Ghost Boy noted.
"So, the last two are in the final level?" Sour Demon inquired.
"That varies with each game. The keys are randomized every time we restart. Thus, the collection of keys is never the same," Ghost Boy explained.
"Fair enough," Sour Demon acknowledged, pondering.
"Get down!" FryerTuck shouted, pulling them to safety.
"Tuck?" Ghost Boy questioned.
"It's Chaos!" he declared, pointing out the danger.
Sour Demon glanced over and spotted the character they had described to her. To be honest, she had encountered bigger and worse threats.
"That's Chaos?" she inquired.
"Yep, and it seems he's after the keys too," FryerTuck confirmed.
"And for some odd reason, he always comes after us just as we're about to collect all the keys!" added Ghost Boy.
Sour Demon pondered this as she noticed FryerTuck and Ghost Boy looking terrified.
"He's right behind me, isn't he?" She asked, her tone dripping with ennui.
They nodded, and she let out a groan, a reaction all too familiar to her from the real world.
"I refuse to turn around," she declared, ducking.
"AHHH!" FryerTuck screamed as he was struck and vanished.
"And now he's reset to level one," noted Ghost Boy.
Sour Demon rolled forward, drawing one of her laser guns. She spun and fired, forcing Chaos to narrowly evade. She then drew her second gun and shot at the ground near Chaos's feet, kicking up a cloud of dust that obscured his vision. As Sour Demon smirked, Chaos managed to clear the dust, only to realize that both adversaries had vanished. He scanned the area until he felt the weight of someone landing on his back.
"Nice to meet you, Chaos. I'm Sour Demon," She said, placing a laser gun at the back of his head and firing.
Ghost Boy approached, watching as Chaos vanished. He stared in shock while Sour Demon twirled her gun and smirked.
"Don't mess with the queen, bitches!" She exclaimed.
"You... You just... defeated Chaos?!" Ghost Boy shouted, astonished.
In the real world, Danny Fenton leaned back in shock. Soon, everyone playing began to flood the PMs, discussing what they had just witnessed.
"I've seen it, I've witnessed it, but I still can't believe it!" Ghost Boy exclaimed.
Sour Demon walked up and seized the last two keys, pocketing them before heading towards the door. Ghost Boy quickly followed, still in disbelief at what he had seen.
She inserted the keys into the door and turned to Ghost Boy.
"Well?" she inquired, jolting him back to reality.
He was about to add his keys when he remembered something.
"Tuck had the other keys," he said with a sigh.
"And he lost them when he died, didn't he?" Sour Demon asked.
"Yes, and the door won't open unless we have all seven," Ghost Boy replied as the keys vanished one after the other.
"Ugh! That means we have to gather them all over again!" Sour Demon lamented.
"It's not entirely bad. You've achieved something unprecedented. As a first-time player, you defeated Chaos!" Ghost Boy remarked, aware that this triumph wouldn't fade anytime soon.
Sour Demon rolled her eyes. Chaos was just another big brute who picked on smaller players, but she knew how to handle them.
"Well, I wish I could stay on longer. It's past midnight, and I have school tomorrow," Ghost Boy said.
Sour Demon looked at him, slightly surprised, then sighed and nodded.
"Fine. Thanks for helping me with the game," she said, turning away from him.
She was then startled to see something floating above her head, followed by a 'ding' sound.
"What did you do?" she asked.
"I just sent my Pen Pal's name. If you ever want to talk outside the game..." Ghost Boy said nervously.
Sour Demon glanced at him before sighing.
"Whatever, see you later," she said, logging out.
Later,
Malina leaned back in her chair, savoring her drink. The game was quite the experience, and it came with a Pen Pal feature, which she hadn't opened yet. Playing with those two had been enjoyable, and surprisingly, she had obtained the game without an internet connection. Noticing the time, she realized Ghost Boy was correct; it was past midnight, and she had cleaning left to do. After finishing her drink and saving her progress in Pen Pal, she turned off her computer and set about her tasks.
Unbeknownst to her, this was just one of the initial encounters she would have with the two players.
I've finally begun my standalone story featuring Danny and Malina. As conceived, with a bit of assistance, Malina and Danny's paths cross online in DOOMED, where Malina becomes the first character to defeat Sam—yes, Sam is Chaos. Those familiar with Teacher of the Year will understand. While this narrative focuses on the Danny/Malina pairing, I've incorporated an idea from my initial Danny Phantom/Helltaker crossover. Recall my approach in Demon of Amity Park with Jazz and Zrdara? I've decided to replicate that concept here. However, it will take some time as Danny and Malina have yet to meet in person. The current title is the best I've devised; suggestions for a better one are welcome.