(another) Danny Phantom - Alice Isn’t Dead crossover
Keisha’s truck breaks down in a remote stretch of highway and the Fentons, happening to be driving along on the same route, pull over to help her repair it.
* * *
“Damn it,” Keisha cursed.
Of all the times for something in her engine to start to make horrible noises, it had to be in a stretch of highway in the middle of absolute fucking nowhere.
Pulling over, she popped open the bed of the truck. She was no mechanic, but if it was something minor having come loose, it’d hopefully be simpler to fix it herself than call and wait for a repair guy to come deal with it.
She spent several minutes trying to look through the engine’s contents, then was pulled suddenly from her thoughts by the sound of a large vehicle pulling to a stop nearby.
The vehicle was like nothing she’d ever seen before. Half RV, half literal tank, and covered in what looked like weird scifi gadgets.
But before she could even fully process its appearance, out of the door popped the largest man she’d ever seen. He was easily over six and a half feet tall, and built like a brick wall.
“Heya! I noticed you stopped, and I wanted to see if you needed any help!” the man called out in a boisterous voice. He stepped forward and held out a massive hand. “I’m Jack Fenton, by the way!”
“And I’m Maddie” introduced a shorter (though still quite strong looking) woman, stepping out of the truck after him
She awkwardly shook Jack’s hand. “…Keisha. And yeah, my truck started making weird noises, so I was trying to figure out why. No luck so far though.”
“Want me and my wife to take a look? We know a bit or two about technology!”
She glanced warily at the couple’s crazy vehicle. “Sure…” she drawled out uncertainly. “Just try not to break anything, yeah?”
Maddie chuckled. “Don’t worry, dear, we’re scientists! We’ll have your truck up and running in a jiffy.”
The pair stepped over and began to poke around in the truck’s engine, while Keisha stood next to them awkwardly.
After a stretch of uncomfortable silence broken up only by quiet technological discussion between the couple, Keisha felt the need to say something. “So, what are you two traveling here for?”
“Well, partially it’s a vacation for the kids, but we’re also tracking some signs of ectoplasmic activity.”
“Ectoplasmic?”
“You know, ghosts. The supernatural. You seen anything like that?”
Shit, should she even say anything? Did she really want to send these kind weirdos towards all that? “…Yeah, I think I have.”
Jack suddenly bolted upright. “Really? Where?!”
“All over, really. Northern Utah, the coast of Florida, and more. The Hungry Man, too - but I wouldn’t go looking for him. He’s dangerous.”
“We’re ghost hunters, we’ll be fine!”
“…Ghost hunters?”
“Yep! Fighting off all the spooks and specters! We make tech for it, too - just look up FentonWorks in Amity Park!”
“We have also made other patents too, though,” Maddie commented from within the engine. “Speaking of— Danny, honey, could you get me the thing of spare parts? I think I found the issue.”
After a couple moments, a tired looking teenager emerged from the RV-tank carrying a bulging duffel bag. Maddie ruffled through it, and pulled out a strange device Keisha couldn’t recognize.
A bit more fiddling in the engine later alongside her husband, and Maddie pulled herself upright.
“Alright, I think that should do it. Can you start your engine again?”
Keisha climbed up into the cab and did so. Indeed, the engine was no longer making the sound.
“Thank you so much.” She drew her wallet and held out a few bills. “Here, as thanks.”
Jack waved her off. “Don’t worry about it. We’re happy to help! Besides, that ghost info you gave us could be useful!”
Keisha paused. “No, really… be careful. These things are dangerous. And people don’t like it when you try look into them.”
Maddie patted her on the leg, shoulder out of reach. “I appreciate the concern, but really, we’ll be fine. Come on, Jack.”
The couple and their son clambered back into their crazy vehicle, and both vehicles began to drive again. And eventually, some ways down the road, they took different turns.
Guess this was goodbye.
Keisha really hopes they’re going to be okay. The family was weird, but they were nice. Compared to others on the road, it was a lovely change of pace. Hopefully, if they were lucky, they won’t find anything. Or if they do, she hopes their crazy vehicle will be able to outrun it. She’d hate to have accidentally led them to their deaths.
But for now, it was just time to drive. To continue recording her audio messages for Alice.
