Written and Programed by: Alexander McNeil
J.J. opens the door to the basement and descends down the stairs. They pass by a poster for //Dracula XVI: This Time, It's Personal// and shake their head. "Geez, Mom and Dad. I get being super fans, but this is ridiculous," They say as they reach the bottom of the stairs. "Still, it's nice to see it all come together like this."
As they flip the light switch, they are greeted by myriads of horror movie and occult paraphernalia decorating the basement. From cardboard cutouts advertising horror movies, to replicas of famous iconic monster costumes, and even museum-quality glass displays of "real" artifacts. Their parents collected //everything//. If it was from a Rated-R horror movie, it was bound to at least be in this basement somewhere.
"So...What do I mess around with today?"
[[Cardboard Cutouts]]
[[Glass Displays]]
[[Replica Costumes]]J.J. looks at one of the costumes and smiles. It's of a serial killer with a prop chainsaw and antique mask next to it on a hook.
"I can't believe Dad never wore this for Halloween. This thing would make Hollywood costume designers blush!"
They look over to a mannequin that's dressed in an ethereal, haunting, and flowing greyish-black wedding dress.
"I swear Mom would've gotten married in this if it wasn't for 'display only'."
Where to next?
[[Cardboard Cutouts]]
[[Glass Displays]]J.J. walks across to observe the row of cardboard cutouts kept in perfect condition.
They stop in front of the cutout with the derranged clown wielding a pie with a bomb fuse baked into it and preparing to throw it at the viewer.
"Can't believe this used to scare me." J.J. said with a chuckle.
Next, they stop in front of a cutout that has an amphibious creature with huge, bulging eyes reaching its arm out of the murky depths of the swamp to grab at a random person's legs.
"I never understood why people swam in swamps, anyway. What, too good for the public pool or Six Flags?" J.J. asked to no one.
Finally, they got to a cutout of a bug-eyed green alien in a space suit holding a blaster in one hand and a human skull in another.
"Why //do// we always depict them with green skin, anyway?" they once again ask aloud.
Where to next?
[[Glass Displays]]
[[Replica Costumes]] J.J. walks in front of the display cases and peers into each of them.
In the leftmost case, they saw a very old and weathered porcelain doll with deadly, piercing blue eyes and a late-victorian era dress propped up against a stand as she stared off into the distance.
"Hey Betsy." J.J. says as they casually brush past the doll.
The rightmost case had a preserved and mummified carcass of a bat that was hung upside down to give the illusion that it was sleeping.
"Poor thing. Deserves a real resting place." J.J. laments as they move on to the final display.
The centermost display case held nothing but a book that had been beaten and worn by time, the elements, and an accidental juice box that a four-year-old J.J. spilled onto it as their parents were moving it. The plaque on the bottom read, "Necronomicon - Book of Evils" followed by "DO NOT OPEN", making it the only display case with this label and warning.
"Pfft, right," J.J. scoffs. "Like anyone wants this crusty thing."
Where to next?
[[Cardboard Cutouts]]
[[Replica Costumes]]
[[Open Case]]"You know what? I'll bite. Let's see what ol' Beelzebub was cooking back in the day." J.J. says as they pull the book from the case and crack it open.
Immediately, the rancid aroma of dust, mold, and mildew fills the air as J.J. sputters and gags.
"Ugh, bad idea! Bad idea!" they say between coughs.
Eventually, they become accustomed to the smell to where it is bearable enough to continue to read. After several minutes, J.J. finds something that they can easily read.
"Here we go...'Rah-Rah, Cis-Boom-Bah, Go go demons, Hoo-Rah-Yah.'" they said with a mixture of unenthusiasm and confusion in their voice.
After waiting and looking around the basement for any demonic-looking creatures that weren't made out of cardboard, polyester, or rubber, J.J. closed the book with a huff.
"I knew this was all baloney." they said.
As they attempt to get up, a chill runs down their spine and they can feel their stomach wrench in pain.
[[Attempt to run]]
[[Attempt to call for help]]As J.J. feels this searing pain in their stomach, they attempt to run back up the stairs, but fall to the floor and double over in pain.
Suddenly, a voice from within their head rings out and says, "FOOLISH HUMAN CHILD! YOU DARE INVOKE THE NAME OF...Wait, why is everything so much bigger than me?"
As they opened their eyes, J.J. could see a tiny red imp-like creature no bigger than a two-week-old kitten with bat wings flufttering in the air, confused by their surroundings.
[["Uh...Hi?"]]J.J. tries to call for help, but their voice gives out and starts coughing as they lay to the floor nearly passing out from the pain.
Suddenly, a voice from within their head rings out and says, "FOOLISH HUMAN CHILD! YOU DARE INVOKE THE NAME OF...Wait, why is everything so much bigger than me?"
As they opened their eyes, J.J. could see a tiny red imp-like creature no bigger than a two-week-old kitten with bat wings flufttering in the air, confused by their surroundings.
[["Uh...Hi?"]] The imp looks down at the doubled-over preteen.
"You! State who you are and what you've done to me!" it demands in it's little angry voice.
Barely focused on what's going on, J.J. responds, "I'm J.J., you're in my basement...are you a talking cat?"
The imp nearly says something, but they catch a glance of their reflection in one of the display cases seeing that they are, in fact, pretty much a red talking cat with wings and horns.
"NOOOOOOOOO! MY WONDERFUL, INTIMIDATING VISAGE!" it cries as it hugs it's reflection in the mirror. "ALL RUINED BY THIS...FLUFFINESS!"
J.J. continues to stare at the imp, less out of fear and more out of genuine befuddlement.
//"What on Earth did I just release...?"//
[["So, what are you?"]]
[[Try to pet the creature]]"So like, who--or what--even are you?" J.J. finally asks amid the creature's constant wailing.
The little cat demon clears its throat and straightens its posture, as if to distract J.J. from the fact they were blubbering a few seconds ago.
"My name is likely untranslatable to your pathetic human tongue, but I suppose I can give you an approximation. You will refer to me as Demon Lord Salazar Ba'al Ignis Ars Zebul, Sovereign of the 5th circle of the nether realm." it said, looking proud despite its tiny stature.
"...Yeah, I'll just call you 'Scratchy'." said J.J.
"WHAT?! YOU DARE BELITTLE ME, HUMAN?!" Scratchy cried, tiny embers sparking from his eyes.
[["What? Scratchy's a cute name!"]]
[[Eep! Sorry, Lord Salad Ball!]]While the strange creature is weeping off to the side, J.J. finds the strength to stand up and approach it. They started to gently stroke the cat-like demon's head like they used to with their old cat. Suddenly, it stopped crying and started to purr like a cat would.
"So you //are// a cat!" J.J. said out loud.
"Wh--I am not!" It replied, hissing very much like an angry cat would.
"If it looks like a cat, purrs like a cat, and hisses like a cat, then it's a cat!" J.J. says with a playful yet mocking tone, stroking it's head more. "I'll call you Scratchy."
"...If you weren't so good at petting me, I would have burned you to cinders by now." Scratchy said as he narrowed his eyes.
[["How'd you get in that book, anyway?"]]
[["Do you have any demon friends?]]"Hey, come on! Scratchy's a good name! It was my cat's before he passed away." J.J. said, playfully shrugging their shoulders.
"I don't care about your dead feline!" Scratchy said with a huff.
"Rude," J.J. replied with a pout. "Anyway, how'd you even get here?"
"Well, I was in the middle of a competition with my fellow demon lords to decide who gets to lead the nether world and your filthy human world! That is, until someone decided to summon us with a forbidden and ancient incantation." Scratchy explained.
J.J. looked over at the passage of the Necronomicon they said to summon Scratchy.
//"This// is what they considered 'ancient' and 'forbidden' back then?" they said, raising an eyebrow.
"Silence! Your pitiful human brain knows nothing of these sacred texts!" Scratchy snapped.
[["Wait, did you say you were //all// summoned?"]]The cat demon rolled its flaming red eyes.
"Fine. 'Scratchy' will suffice. Since you clearly can't manage something so simple as a title." he said.
While J.J. disliked being talked down to, they also like their body not charred to bits.
"Anyway, you haven't happened to have seen my peers, have you? They were transported alongside me."
"Not a clue!" J.J. responded with an earnest smile.
"Ugh. Of course. And right when we started our conquest to rule both realms."
Before J.J. could ask for an elaboration on that, an odd whistling sound filled the air.
[[Stay perfectly still]] "So, what were you doing in the Necronomicon?" J.J. asked.
"I wasn't //in// the Necronomicon, you twit. I was summoned //from// it, no thanks to you! And I was in the middle of a very important competition to decide who gets to rule over your stupid human world!" Scratchy explained.
Before the twelve-year-old could probe the cat demon further, they heard the sound of shuffling behind them. They quickly whipped their body around, still holding Scratchy.
[[Stay perfectly still]] "So, you got any demon buddies that'll be looking for ya?" asked J.J. while they continued to pet the demon cat.
"Ugh. They're not my 'buddies', but I suppose the other eight lords of the nether world likely were transported here as well." Scratchy responded, his tail swishing back and forth.
"Where do you think they went?"
"Not far. I would even take a guess that they're--"
Before Scratchy could finish his statement, a loud scraping noise was heard from the opposite side of the basement.
"Eek!" J.J. and Scratchy shriek in unison as they cling on to each other.
[[Stay perfectly still]] "Hang on, you said all of your friends got summoned?" J.J. asked.
Before Scratchy could answer, a loud ''//THUD//'' caught the two off guard. Looking for the source of the sound, they discovered it came from Betsy's display case. She had fallen forward and hit her head on the glass, which should be impossible due to all of the wires that are supposed to keep her in place.
"...Was that doll always positioned like that?" Scratchy asked with a bit of apprehension in his voice.
"Noooope." J.J. responded.
[[Stay perfectly still]]With neither of them making any sudden moves, the two began to notice what was going on in the basement. The cardboard cutouts shifted closer to them, the mannequins awkwardly lumbered their way over, and Betsy easily opened up her display case along with the mummified bat's. All the while, a whispy black fog rolled into the basement.
Too terrified to even open their mouth, J.J. tightly held Scratchy to their chest, as both a means for security and to potentially use as a meat-shield.
Finally, a voice rang out. "So, //this// is the other world we're fighting for? Rather droll if you ask me." It said, coming from the wedding dress mannequin.
"It stinks! At least I think it does, why don't I have a nose?" said another voice, this one coming from the bat.
"Not to mention how much weaker we all are. I can't even turn my blasted head around!" said the clown cutout.
[[Speak up]]"Um," J.J.'s tiny voice squeaked in an attempt to get the seemingly possessed objects. "H-hi there?"
They all immediately turn their heads (At least the ones that would plausibly have joints in their neck) at them and nearly burned a hole through poor J.J.'s skull with their empty, horrifying gaze.
"Ohh. This must be the one who summoned us!" said the bat.
"This puny thing? Humans are getting smaller by the century." said the serial killer, shaking his head.
"Hold on a moment, is that you, Salazar?" asked the alien, leaning itself forward to get a look at the cat-like creature in J.J.'s arms.
"...Yes." Scratchy said with a sigh.
The other demons burst out into laughter.
"Man, you sure saved us the trouble by going in first!" the clown cackled. "I'd have drank a gallon of holy water if I got reverted to an imp!"
Scratchy said nothing as he was tormented by his former peers, hanging his head in frustration and shame.
[[Where's #8...?]]//"Wait, If Scratchy said there were eight of them, then where is he?"// J.J. quietly asked themself.
As if on cue, a figure formed amidst the black fog, propped up against one of the support beams of the basement. He had vibrant red skin, two horns curled like a ram's while being twice as thick, and a smile that managed to send a chill down J.J.'s spine while also setting their lungs on fire. The most stricking thing about him was he was the only other being in the basement besides J.J. and Scratchy to be made from flesh and blood.
"Well, now isn't this lovely? I managed to retain some semblance of my original form." he said with a voice sweeter than honey and deadlier than poison.
He then looked over to J.J. "You must be the one who interrupted our competition. A shame," he said as he snapped his fingers and teleported J.J. close to him. "I'm afraid I'll have to kill you for that."
[[Brace for the worst]]
J.J. shut their eyes tight and hoped whatever the arch-devil had in mind was painless, Scratchy finally spoke up.
"Brother, wait! Perhaps we could use them..."
Not taking his eyes off J.J., the arch devil asks, "How, exactly?"
"Think of it this way; I can't compete like this, and you want to continue the competition. What if the human acts in my stead for the competition?"
After watching the arch-devil ponder over this proposition, J.J. was dropped to the floor like a piece of garbage.
"If you wanted to forfeit, you could've just said so outright, but very well," he said, teasing his "brother". "The human shall take your place. If they win, you get to reign over the nether world //and// the human world. Should you lose...you are banished and the human is sentenced to eternal punishment. Do we have a deal, human?" he asked with a sadistically sweet smile to J.J.
[[Take the deal]]
Against their better judgement, and since they really don't have a choice, J.J. swallows their pride and fear.
"D-deal..." they say, returning a meek smile.
"It's settled, then! The human will now represent Salazar in our game." said the arch demon as he snapped his fingers. A large scoreboard appeared above them that had a bunch of words scribbled onto it that J.J. couldn't understand. However, they soon saw their name replace the last name on the list, likely Scratchy's, before the scoreboard disappeared.
"Now that just leaves one more thing to be taken care of," said the arch-devil. "I think it would be more fun if everybody else had a 'proper' body, if you catch my meaning."
With another snap of his fingers, the room filled with more black fog that enveloped all of the other demon-possessed creatures. To J.J.'s horror, they no longer saw the cardboard cutouts or mannequins that were once there. Instead, they were greeted by nearly perfect copies of the famed horror monsters they once portrayed; From Dracula, to the swamp monster, to even a ghost made from the ethereal wedding dress. Except for the doll, she stayed the same. However, J.J. had a hard time telling whether or not it bothered her.
"Eep." said J.J.
[[Let The Games Begin!]]"Brothers and sisters, the time has come! The competition to decide who rules both the nether and human worlds starts now!" The arch-demon announced. He then materialized and held up a small silver medal "Each of you has one of these. Beat your opponent, and you get to steal it from them. The first to collect all nine wins! Sounds good?"
The monsters all gave a frightful-sounding cheer followed by thunderous applause.
"Oh man, how am I gonna compete against all of these guys?" J.J. lamented quietly.
"Relax," Scratchy whispered back. "I'll help you with whatever challenges they throw at you. Besides, a lot of them are similar to those 'video games' humans have."
"Now then, if we're all ready," said the arch-demon as he looked directly at J.J. "Begin!"
In a split second, the monsters all ran out of the basement door and into the streets of the city, knocking poor J.J. and Scratchy to the ground.
"Great, now what?" J.J. asked.
"We find one of the monsters, kid. Tell me which one you want to go first and I'll sniff 'em out."
"Sounds fair, partner! Now where to go..."
[[The Clown]]
[[The Alien]]
[[Dracula]]
[[The Doll]]
[[The Swamp Monster]]
[[The Serial Killer]]
[[The Ghost]]
(if:(history: where its tags contains "Winner")'s length is 0)[[Victory...?]]]"Time to put down the clown!" said J.J.
"You got it, kid!" said Scratchy.
J.J. grabbed their bike near the back door of the basement and rode it out into the streets, on the hunt for the demon clown.
Eventually, they wound up in front of a miniature circus tent.
"Subtlety isn't this guy's strong suit, huh?" said J.J.
"Not even a little," replied the cat demon, licking his paw fur. "Fitting he got the clown."
Stepping inside, they were greeted by the clown. He was juggling several knives and explosives in one hand, while holding an assortment of multi-colored balloons in the other.
"Ooh, lookie-here! It seems we got some eager volunteers to join the show!" he said as he laughed manically.
"Oh, just give it a rest and start your challenge." Scratchy said, in no mood for any clown-themed shenanigans.
"Hmph. Fine, ya big killjoy." the clown said as he materialized a ping-pong table. "First to five points wins! Also, the ping-pong balls explode if you miss them. Serious enough for you?!"
[[Win the game (Clown)]]
[[Lose the game (Clown)]]"Let's send that alien to the stars!" said J.J.
"You got it, kid!" said Scratchy.
The two eventually rode up to an old arcade where the alien was stationed.
"I couldn't get to a military base in time, so I picked the next best thing!" said the alien as he brandished a plastic gun at them.
"Pfft. What's that gonna do?" asked J.J.
"This!" the alien responded in delight. Suddenly, a laser shot out of the seemingly innocent children's toy.
"Eep!" J.J. cried as they grabbed Scratchy and ducked behind an old arcade machine. "Scratchy! What're we gonna do?!" asked J.J. as they dodged another blast.
Before the cat demon could answer, they saw a similar toy blaster on the ground. They picked it up with their mouth and tossed it to J.J.
"Use this!" he cried.
J.J. caught it and pulled the trigger. It worked just like the alien's!
"Eat your heart out, Space Invaders!"
[[Win the game (Alien)]]
[[Lose the game (Alien)]]"I've always wanted to hunt a vampire!"
"You got it, kid!" said Scratchy.
As they rode to the local graveyard, the sky became noticibly darker. J.J. and Scratchy saw a lone coffin propped up against one of the statues. The preteen creeped up to the wooden case and prepared to knock on it, when suddenly it sprang open revealing the demon-possessed Dracula inside. J.J. and Scratchy jumped backwards and briefly held onto each other.
"I have been waiting for you..." he said as he leaned his body forward. "It is time I put you under my thrall. You will be excellent additions to my army!"
The vampire's eyes began to glow and swirl with a hypnotic pattern. J.J. tried to look away, but they found themself losing control and submitting their will...At least, that's what they //thought // was happening.
"...You know you don't actually have Dracula's powers, right?" said Scratchy in a disappointed and deadpaned tone.
"...Bleh!" Dracula cried as he turned into a bat and started wildly fluttering around the area.
"He's too fast! How're we gonna catch him?" said J.J.
Scratchy frantically searched around until he found a toy pop gun with several wooden corks beside it.
"You ever hunt ducks before?" asked the cat demon.
"Nope! But I've seen someone play that before!"
"Close enough!" said Scratchy as he tossed them the pop gun.
[[Win the game (Dracula)]]
[[Lose the game (Dracula)]]"How about we smash some dolls?"
"You got it, kid!" said Scratchy.
At an abandoned playground, they caught up with the doll. It was swinging back and forth on a rusty swing set with seemingly nobody else pushing it.
"Uh...Hey." said J.J. "So, what's your challenge?"
The doll merely pointed to an elaborate bar setup, complete with barstools and actual working taps.
"...How even?!" asked Scratchy, his mouth hanging open in utter confusion.
"It's okay, Scratchy! My uncle owns a bar that I occasionally run, so I'm already familiar with the basics." said J.J.
"We've //got// to have a talk about your family, kid..."
[[Win the game (Doll)]]
[[Lose the game (Doll)]]"Let's swim with the fishes."
"You got it, kid!" said Scratchy.
The two tracked the swamp monster down to a small marsh near the forest. The creature was wading in the murky waters with it's enormous yellow eyes breaching the surface.
"Hey! We can see you hiding, Bright-Eyes!" cried J.J. as they leered into the water.
The swamp creature rose up from the water to leer back at J.J.
"My challenge is simple," it said. "All you have to do is hop like a frog across these logs and get to the other end of the swamp before I do."
"Sounds easy enough--" J.J. began before the creature cut them off.
"Oh, and if you fall into the water, the alligators will tear you apart, limb from limb." it said.
"There it is." said Scratchy as he sighed.
[[Win the game (Swamp Monster)]]
[[Lose the game (Swamp Monster)]]"Ready to out run a serial killer?"
"You got it, kid!" said Scratchy.
J.J. and Scratchy tracked the serial killer out to a cabin in the woods.
The preteen knocked on the door, ready to face anything. Instead, they were greeted with an empty shack.
"You sure you went the right way, Scratchy?" J.J. asked.
"Of course! He should be here for sure!" the cat demon replied.
The sound of a chainsaw revving up caused both of them to freeze. Just a few yards behind them was the serial killer, brandishing his weapon. At least, until he tossed it aside and held up his fists.
"I...I think he just wants to box?" Scratchy said, raising an eyebrow.
"I can't box him! I have weak noodle arms!" cried J.J.
"Relax! I got you. Just repeat after me: 'Left hook, Right hook, dodge!'"
"Left hook, Right hook, dodge!"
"There ya go, kid! Now punch his lights out!"
[[Win the game (Killer)]]
[[Lose the game (Killer)]]"Let's bust some ghosts!"
"You got it, kid!" said Scratchy.
The two managed to chase the ghost down to an artificial hedge maze where she was waiting for them to arrive.
"Greetings. My task is simple. You will run through my maze while I chase you and collect as many fruits as you see before reaching the exit."
"Wait, you're going to chase me? No offense, but I don't think you'll get that far in that dress." said J.J., holding back a snicker.
"Yeah, Try coming up with a better challenge that isn't just you handing over your badge." Scratchy added, failing to hold back his laughter.
The ghost responded by wailing loudly in J.J.'s face and causing herself to look more demonic.
J.J. and Scratchy proceeded to dash into the maze with no further comments.
[[Win the game (Ghost)]]
[[Lose the game (Ghost)]]"Gah-!" cried the clown. "Curses! I knew I shoulda stuck to being a sewer clown!" he lamented as he exploded into confetti and smoke, leaving his medal the cardboard cutout in his place, before the latter was teleported back to the basement.
You got the Clown Medal! Head on back to find the others. With one final blast, the alien went down, clutching its chest.
"Why did I...just leave that there?" It said before it exploded and returned to it's cardboard cutout form. Before it warped back to the basement, it dropped its medal to the ground.
You got the Alien Medal! Head on back to find the others.The final cork hit the tiny bat Dracula square in the stomach as it plummeted to the earth.
"I'm not even Dracula...and I still get taken out by wood!" he cried as he exploded and returned to his shriveled-up husk form. As it teleported back to the basement, the medal was lying in the spot where the bat fell.
You got the Dracula Medal! Head on back to find the others."Oh frogs," said J.J. as the tried to catch their breath. "I'll never look down at you or your lifestyle again."
Meanwhile, the swamp monster was busy becoming alligator chow. Once the alligators got their fill, they swam off and left behind the cardboard cutout of the swamp monster and the medal. Both of which managed to stay dry before the former teleported back into the basement.
You got the Swamp Medal! Head on back to find the others.The doll fell face-first onto the counter, dizzy and still holding a pint of root beer in one of her hands.
"Okay, Betsy. You've had enough." said J.J.
The doll responded by giving the preteen an incrredibly rude gesture with her porcelain fingers before she stopped moving entirely. Once she teleported back to the basement, the bar disappeared with her, only leaving behind a shiny silver medal.
"...I have seen many things in my centuries of living. A drunken possessed doll certainly was not one of them." said Scratchy, still left in a state of confusion.
You got the Doll Medal! Head on back to find the others.With one final left hook from J.J., the serial killer fell to the ground on his back, completely knocked out.
"Holy cow...I just beat up a technically real serial killer! Cross //that// off the bucket list!" J.J. said, excitedly.
"You're welcome." said Scratchy as he walked over and dropped the medal by their feet.
"D'aww, thank you, Scratchy!" the preteen said as they scratched behind the cat demon's ears.
"...I'll let this one slide." the latter said as he continued to allow the scratches to continue.
You got the Killer Medal! Head on back to find the others.Once the two made it to the exit with all of the fruits in their hands/paws, the ghost loudly wailed out again as she evaporated into the daylight. As they were catching their breath, the wedding dress gently floated down to the ground and landed on top of the two.
"...Huh, the material is a lot more breathable than I expected." said J.J.
"Goes to show what we know." Scratchy responded, nodding his furry little head.
You got the Ghost Medal! Head on back to find the others."J.J., look out!" Scratchy screamed. Before the preteen could react, they were enveloped in a cage of fire.
"What the--?! What's going on?!" they cried as they frantically looked around. Their concern was undercut by the sound of laughter coming from the arch-devil.
"You truly are stupid!" he said as he grabbed the last of the medals and placed them into the scoreboard. "You took out all of the competition and brought all of the medals to me! Did you think I just gave up because I didn't run out with them?!"
"You...dirty cheater!" said J.J.
"It's not cheating if I never explained //everything//," the arch-devil mocked. "With you and your sorry excuse for a demon out of the way, I'll finally be able to rule both worlds!"
"Not if I have anything to say about it!" said Scratchy as he ran up to the arch-devil and bit at his ankles.
The arch-devil barely flinched and lifted the burning cage into the air.
"Oh my, do I have an itch on my ankle?" he asked as he feigned ignorance before kicking Scratchy to the side. "It's probably nothing. Now, it's time to claim my victory!"
With that, the arch-devil lept into the air and left behind a burning hole in J.J.'s house.
"Scratchyyyyyyyyy!" J.J. cried as they were carried away.
The little cat demon was left doubled over in pain and curled into a ball. It was all his fault. This kid is going to die because of him, all because he was dumb enough to answer their summon of him in the first place.
...No. Now's not the time for this. Scratchy picks his head up and looks at the costumes, cutouts, and display cases that once housed his other demon companions.
[[Time to finish this]]"Hope you all don't mind, but I've got a contest to win //and// a kid to save!" said Scratchy.
By absorbing the remaining energy leftover from all the other demons, Scratchy managed to create a form for himself that was similar in stature to the arch-devil. He flew into the blood-red sky and chased after the arch-devil and J.J., who were atop a construction site near the outskirts of the city.
"Arch-devil!" he cried. "You still need to get one more medal--//My// medal! Otherwise, you're no stronger than the rest of us! So come on and face me!"
The arch-devil looked down at Scratchy and sneered. "Very well. You caught onto my bluff. I was waiting for you to show up, anyway. Let's get this over with!" he said.
"Here is my challenge, Salazar. If you make it to the top and grab the child, you win! Fail at any point, and the child dies. Have fun!" the arch-demon said as he conjured a flaming barrel and rolled it down the scaffolding with a powerful kick.
"Oh, and watch out for falling debris!" he gleefully added.
Undeterred, Scratchy jumped over the flaming barrel and prepared for his ascent up the tower.
"It's on." he said.
[[Win the game (Arch-Devil)]]After a harrowing climb up the would-be tower, Scratchy finally made his way to the top. "Let the kid go!" he said, attempting to dive for J.J.'s cage. However, the arch-devil managed to bat him away before he got close.
"Pathetic! You think clearing some stupid challenge is enough to beat me?! I am the ruler of both realms! You are nothing but a lowly, scum-sucking--" the arch-devil monologued before J.J. managed to swing a large hammer into the back of his legs, causing him to stagger. "Argh! Blasted human!"
"Nice shot, kid!" Scratchy said with a smile as he dove forward and touched the cage, dispelling the flames.
J.J. immediately went to hug their now full-sized demon friend.
"You did it...!" they said, holding him tight.
"No...NO--!" the arch-devil cried as he attempted to reach out and grab J.J., but Scratchy punched him in the face with enough force to send him flying over the edge. "CUUUUUURSE YOOOUUU!" he cried as he fell to the ground and exploded into flames.
After a few seconds of silence, a silver medal flew up from the ground and into the hands of J.J. and Scratchy.
You got the Devil Medal! Congratulations!
[[Game Over]]"Well, I guess this is it," said J.J. "time to take over our world in your own image, huh?"
Scratchy stayed silent for a few seconds as the medals from all the other demons floated around him.
"Yeah. You could say that," he said.
"While you're turning all the lakes into lava and the grass into sulfur...can you at least make our suffering a little tolerable?"
Scratchy looked at J.J. with a melancholy, if earnest expression. "I'll try my best." he said as he ascended high into the sky with the medals. Suddenly, there was a flash of light, before everything went dark.
[[Thank's for playing!]]J.J. opens the door to their basement and descend down the stairs. They pass by a poster for //Nosferatu XII: Beach of Blood// and shake their head. "Geez, Mom and Dad. I get being super fans, but this is ridiculous," They said as they reached the bottom of the stairs. "Still, it's nice to see it all come together like this."
As J.J. flips the light switch, they are greeted by myriads of horror movie and occult paraphernalia decorating the basement. From cardboard cutouts advertising horror movies, to replicas of famous iconic monster costumes, and even museum-quality glass displays of "real" artifacts. Their parents collected //everything//. If it was from a Rated-R horror movie, it was bound to at least be in this basement somewhere.
"Now, what to mess round with--" they said before a loud meowing interrupted them. "Alright, alright! I'll feed you first, mister." they said as a simple orange tabby cat with fake devil horns on its head brushed past their legs.
As they scooped the cat food into a bowl, J.J. looked at their cat and smiled.
"You know, Scratchy? Of all the crazy little demons we call cats, I'm glad I'm stuck with you." they said with a wink.
The cat responded with a tiny meow, but for a split second, they could've sworn they heard a voice in their head say, "Right back at ya, kid."
"Pfft. Yeah, right. Talking cats." said J.J. as they scratched behind Scratchy's ears.
(align:"=><=")+(box:"X=")[''THE END'']
[[Play again?->Down The Rabbit Hole]]"Sorry, kiddies! Looks like the show's over!" said the clown as he maniacally laughed.
Reduced to nothing but a smoldering pile of ash, J.J. and Scratchy blew away in the wind, losing the game.
(align:"=><=")+(box:"X=")[''GAME OVER'']
[[Try again?->The Clown]]"Ha! It seems like you'll be the ones seeing stars!" the alien said as he pulled the trigger on his laser pistol.
J.J. and Scratchy were sent flying through the arcade window and fell into two convieniently placed garbage cans.
(align:"=><=")+(box:"X=")[''GAME OVER'']
[[Try again?->The Alien]]"We did it! We got all the medals, Scratchy!" J.J. happily cheered as they walked their bike back to their house.
The cat demon smirked. "I don't know why you're so excited, human. My victory only ensures that you and your kind will be enslaved to me!" he said, holding his head high as he walked in an upbeat manner.
"Riiight." said the preteen as they rolled their eyes.
Once they approached the house, J.J. unlocked the basement door and pared their bike in the usual spot.
"Hey, arch-devil! We got the dumb medals!" said J.J.
The arch-devil was idly flipping through a vintage horror comic before he lifted his head.
"Ah, yes. Er, put them into the slots on the scoreboard, and we'll discuss the terms of your victory." he casually said.
"Okay...?" J.J. said as they walked over and began placing the medals into their designated slots. However, something occured to them. Where was his challenge?
[["Look out!"]]The little bat fluttered around happily! "Hahaha! You're a worse aim than I thought, kid! Now, time to feast!" said the faux Dracula as he swooped down and bit J.J.'s neck.
In an instant, all of the blood was drained from their body, and J.J. was left as a pre-teen sized raisin on the ground.
(align:"=><=")+(box:"X=")[''GAME OVER'']
[[Try again?->Dracula]]As J.J. gets up to leave, they notice a small opening in the Necronomicon's display case.
"Weird. These things are usually air-tight." they say as they bend down to close it. As they do, the display case slowly creaks open and leaves the dusty old tome out in the open air.
J.J. looks at the book and ponders for a while. Even though this nonsense isn't real, it probably wouldn't be best to just take it out and read the all-powerful book of evil and doom...right?
[["A peek wouldn't hurt..."]]After taking a swig from her root beer, the doll gave J.J. a very unsatisfied thumbs down.
In an instant, J.J. and Scratchy simultaneously suffered heart attacks and collapsed on the spot.
(align:"=><=")+(box:"X=")[''GAME OVER'']
[[Try again?->The Doll]]"Well, well. Looks like ypu two are all washed up!" said the swamp monster as he clapped his webbed hands together.
J.J. and Scratchy held onto each other as they were encircled by very hungry alligators.
(align:"=><=")+(box:"X=")[''GAME OVER'']
[[Try again?->The Swamp Monster]]With a mighty uppercut to the jaw, the serial killer knocked J.J. flat on their back. Before they knew it, a bell rang, both signifying the end of the match and the poor preteen's life.
(align:"=><=")+(box:"X=")[''GAME OVER'']
[[Try again?->The Serial Killer]]Unable to grab all the fruits and escape the maze in time, J.J. and Scratchy were caught by the ghost. She grabbed them by the nape of their necks and pinched, causing both of them to drop dead on their backs.
(align:"=><=")+(box:"X=")[''GAME OVER'']
[[Try again?->The Ghost]]