Chapter 17: The Cave-in

Maddie kicked one of the aliens in the face and, despite the helmet protecting its flesh, it was sent flying back. She silently winced at the fact her shin hit alien metal and resumed.

Meanwhile, Danny uppercuts one alien, launching it into the ceiling before it collides with it and falls back down.

Looking around, he saw most of them were circling him, some even walking on all fours like cats circling prey.

Maddie swung her saber to keep two Goblins away, though her heavy breathing was making it clear she was tiring out.

"This is taking too long, we gotta get out of here." Maddie said before looking over her shoulder. "Danny, can you get us out?"

"I can… but these guys are gonna cause trouble if we leave them here." He said as he elbowed one of the Goblins trying to attack him.

Maddie pondered fast before noticing the piece of the ceiling that almost fell on her. Suddenly, she smiled as an idea came to her.

One that could ensure Kentucky needn't deal with these creatures anymore if her calculations were right.

"We could cause a cave-in?" She suggested.

Danny was about to punch a Goblin he grabbed by the neck when he heard that.

"Cave-in?" He asks as he went ahead and punched the creature.

"Yes, a cave-in but we need to act fast..." Maddie said as she ducked from two Goblins, making them crash into each other.

"But Mom..." Danny said as he avoided an upward swipe from one Goblin before kicking it away. "Do you mind?! I'm talking with my mother here!" He shouted angrily.

"I get you're worried but it will work. The cave-in will keep most, maybe all of these space vermin trapped with no escape. It ain't pretty, but at least it's a slow way to get rid of them." Maddie suggested.

Although Danny did not like the idea since he's still not over what he did to save Sam earlier, he also realizes these creatures will not listen to them.

"Okay." He said, nodding.

"Now… how do we do it?" Maddie asks herself before turning her head and seeing the RV. The gears in her head turned quickly. "Jackpot. Kids! Do whatever it is you did to shoot the ceiling!"

"Mom, don't you know how the RV's weapon systems work?" Danny asks as he elbows a Goblin in the face.

"Your father's been updating it consistently." Maddie said before kicking a creature in the face.

"Of course." Danny says to her while narrowly avoiding a slash. "Actually, I think we should start with destroying the ectoranium they're using so they can hurt me."

"Good call, son." Maddie said as she adjusted her goggles, picking up something in a smaller cave not far from them. "In there! I got it."

One Goblin was about to attack her from behind, but a blast of energy knocked it down.

"Back off!" Danny shouted as one Goblin grabbed hold of his leg and pulled him away.

Maddie slid into the smaller cave and found the ectoranium. It was about the size of a car engine. Realizing she had to act fast, she started brainstorming..

"Now, how to destroy it?" She pondered before one idea came. She pulled out a beaker with some fluid. "If my calculations are correct, then enough of this should be enough to dissolve it..." She quickly poured the fluid inside and the mineral began melting. In seconds, the substance became a small puddle of green, bubbling.

Nodding, she decided to kick some dirt over it.


Meanwhile, on the surface

Jack was driving in a crazy way, more so than usual.

After the fire department came, he borrowed a truck from Zeke and was now on his way to find his family.

"I hope that they saved some for me! I mean… I hope they're still okay!" He shouted as he floored it.


Elsewhere

While the Fentons were preoccupied with other issues, the fire department managed to get the fire under control.

"Okay… we should be finished in roughly an hour." One firefighter said.

"That's a relief…" Another said.

With that, the McKirks and the Hackfords seemed about ready to go when a large black van drove up to them.

Coming out, two pale men in black suits with sunglasses and black fedoras approached everyone.

"Greetings." One man said to everyone as they walked slowly as though unused to it.

"Who are you "Zeke asked.

"I am from the government. We're here about the cause of the fire..." He said.

"No need, we already know that fool Jack Fenton's to blame..." Alicia said spitefully.

She then received a painful slap in the back of the head from Betty Jo.

"SHUT UP, ALICIA! Jack had nothin' to do with this and he helped us. Stop finding excuses to give him grief, you bitter old bat!" The woman yelled at her.

"Don't call me that!" Alicia yelled at her.

As the two women were about to argue more, the other man in dark clothes cleared his throat.

"There is no need to argue. The cause of the fire was a plane crash..." He explained in a somewhat robotic tone.

"A plane crash?" Zeke asks.

"Indeed… you can see the wreckage over there." One of the men went, pointing to pieces of the alien spaceship appearing around the burnt down trees.

Sally May couldn't help but feel a bit suspicious of this.

"That's one strange looking plane..." She commented.

"To compensate you all… each member of your family will receive $1,000 dollars for assisting, so long as you agree to tell no one of this." One man said, offering checks.

That got Alicia's attention.

"Did you say…" She grinned. "... $1,000?!"

Betty-Jo shook her head in disapproval.

"She hasn't changed one bit..." She muttered under her breath as her family and the Hackfords received the checks.


Meanwhile, in the underground

Danny kneed a Goblin in the face before sending it flying back. It was then he saw his mother return.

"All taken care of." Maddie said.

"Really?" Danny asks, grappling a Goblin.

"I poured some pure sulfuric acid. It's a puddle now, a puddle I also buried in dirt." Maddie answered proudly.

Danny sent her a strange look as he pushed the alien back.

"Mom...why do you have acid? And why did you bring it to a family reunion?" He asked.

His mother had a hesitant look and scratched the back of her head.

"I'd, um... I'd rather not say." His mother said, acting not dissimilar to her husband.

Danny was too distracted by this to see a Goblin run up and slash him in the back.

"AGH!" He went, pulling back.

Before the creature could attack again, it was hit in the head by a blast from the RV.

That was a blast from Dani Phantom, standing outside the RV.

"Get away from him, Space creeps!" She shouted, only to hiss in pain.

It turns out she's still injured as she fell and morphed back to human form as she nursed her knee.

Jazz came out and carried her back in.

"I told you not to do that!" She chastised as she shut the door.

"Well, I couldn't just sit back and do nothing!" Danielle argued.

"Don't make a mistake like Sam!" Jazz said.

"I can hear you!" Sam shouted angrily but was ignored.

Meanwhile, those not attacking Danny or Maddie decided to take care of those not in battle.

"Khbrwuh! Bhbhk brugkhh!" One of the Goblins shouted, pointing at the RV.

Many of them did as ordered, heading towards the vehicle to resume clawing in.

As Jazz was putting ice on Danielle, Tucker saw the small amount of goblins all charging at them, intending to tear them apart.

"They're coming!"

Sam, seeing everyone else busy, got to thinking.

I gotta do something… She thought as she tried to find something to help.

She soon got an idea, one that involved doing something she'd never willingly do. But, if this situation has taught her anything, compromises have to be made when an important event like this happens.

"Here goes everything..." She said as she sat at the driver's seat and turned the ignition.

The RV turned on and the engine was revving with Sam at the wheel, much to everyone's surprise.

"Are you… driving?" Jazz asks.

"No, I'm knitting." Sam snarked as she floored it, turning the shield off at the same time since it doesn't work unless parked.

With a swerve, she knocked the aliens away from the others, ignoring her own feelings on the matter.

She started speed, going in between Danny and Maddie to make the aliens in her path jump away and stop attacking.

With those aliens knocked away, everyone inside the RV sighed in relief.

"Sam, you saved them!" Jazz said, relieved.

"I did..." Sam said.

"Yeah, you did." Tucker said.

Sam smiled, before she frowned and sent them a serious look.

"Also, never tell anyone about me driving such a huge gas guzzler, no one on Earth can ever know about this..." She insisted.

"Seriously? You're upset about that?" Danielle asked incredulously.

"Look, I got my own way of things, okay?! I don't want anyone to know I compromised! Just don't!" Sam demanded.

"... are you going to kill me?" Tucker asked, nervous.

Sam glared at him and took a moment to respond.

"Of course not..." She said flatly.

Tucker just pointed at her.

"You took like 5 seconds, that's plenty of time to contemplate and lie."

Sam rolled her eyes before turning her attention back to the situation at hand.

"Let's see if we can figure out how to work the weapons on this thing."


Outside

The mine that was used as the main entrance to the caverns was unguarded, the aliens all inside.

Soon, a pickup truck came towards it, swerving before breaking hard.

Jack was driving as wildly and ticket-gaining as usual in his hurry.

"Hang on everyone, I'm coming!" He shouted as he reversed on the truck.

He entered the cavern and was about to go into the tunnel when he noticed a lot of the discarded materials, from car engines to tools to other such things they discarded after they ceased their use.

Hmm… those aliens won't be needing this stuff anymore. Best return it. He thought.


In the cave

As Danny did his best to deal with the remaining aliens, Sam was at the RV's driver seat, reading through the manual before rolling her eyes.

"Jazz, does your dad not realize what a manual is? Because this isn't so much about this thing and more about him trying to make the story of building it some epic novel." Sam remarked as she put the book down.

"Unfortunately, yes." Jazz responded with a tired sigh.

The goth girl groaned upon hearing this.

"Of course..." She muttered with an eye roll.

They were distracted when a Goblin was thrown into the ghost shield, sliding down as Danny pulled it by the foot.

"Sorry!" He went before going back to the fight.

Sam went back to reading the manual, but lost patience and tossed it aside.

"Ow!" Tucker went, having been hit by it.

"That's it! I'm pressing everything!" She shouted as she started pushing various buttons.

Unfortunately, she just ended up activating a lot of things that were inside the RV, including the minifridge extending out from the floor, which made Tucker lose his footing, and a microwave that shot out a mini-pizza, which Jazz barely managed to dodge.

"Watch it!" Jazz said, mad at almost being hit with hot mozzarella.

"Not my fault your dad modified this thing to not work and not tell anyone!" Sam argued as she tried to find another button that worked.

"Why does Dad not label these buttons?!" Danielle asks, holding tightly to her seat.

"He doesn't want anyone else to know." Jazz answered, looking rather embarrassed.

"I'm starting to see why he can never get government funding or anything…" Danielle muttered.

This continued as Sam pressed a button. Finally, a cannon came off the roof of the RV and shot the nearest Goblin that tried to break in, making it collapse.

"Finally!" Sam went.

"Do you really think this will help?" Jazz asks.

"Worth a try." Sam responds as she tries to work the console again.

Soon enough, another truck appeared on the scene through the tunnels. It was Jack, who came with the truck with stolen goods all piled up comically in the cargo bed.

"Don't worry everyone, Daddy's here!" Jack said, ready for action as he braked hard.

"Jack..." Maddie said in relief, before seeing the truck and all the items in it. "Uh, where did that truck come from? And what's with all that stuff?" She asked.

"Borrowed and picked up what was stolen, in that order..."Jack said.

"Well, mind going into the RV and showing how your poor decision to reorganize the buttons is setting us back?!" Maddie asks, pointing at their parked vehicle.

"It's not a poor decision, it's a masterful strategy!" Jack defended.

"Like thinking the manual should be a 1,000 page novel on building it and no directions on how it works is supposed to be a masterful work of art?" Maddie asks.

Unwilling to argue given the scenario, Jack rolled his eyes and got to work as he ran for it.

"Hang on! I alone can truly decode it and I alone can rescue my baby!" Jack called out as Sam opened the door for him.

As Jack hopped into the seat, a certain someone cleared her throat loudly.

"You mean babies, right? You have two daughters here." Jazz pointed out.

Jack turned his head to see his eldest child glaring at him while his young adoptee was still holding onto her leg.

"Uh… y-yes!" Jack said with a nervous grin. He chuckled to try and diffuse the situation before moving on. "So, what's the plan?" Jack asks.

"Cave in." Sam said, pointing at the ceiling.

"On it!" Jack said as he started pushing buttons. He then noticed his manual on the dashboard. "Ah, you read my book. What'd you think?"

"If I had a blog… the highest I could give is 1 star out of 5." Sam remarked.

Jack pouted at that as he continues pressing buttons.

At the same time, Danny grabbed Goblin and slammed it face first into the ground before dragging it and tossing it aside.

Maddie, kicking a Goblin in the face, leapt over a small horde trying to rush her and landed gracefully on the hood of the truck.

She jumped into the seat before noticing the lack of keys.

"Danny! Get your father to give you the keys!" She shouted.

"On it!" Danny said.

Along the way, more goblins ambushed them, trying to claw and slash as they charged at the ghost boy but Danny thought fast, making a quick jump to the right before they got too close. He began punching and kicking them in the attempt to hold them back.

He finally reached the RV, knocking on the window as Jack lowered it.

"What's going on, son?" Jack asks.

Danny made a face.

"The keys to the truck you borrowed?" He asks, holding his hand out.

"Ahh… right…" Jack pulled the keys out. "Here they are."

Danny took the keys and flew to his mother, where she grabbed a stolen club from the pile and used it as a weapon to knock the creatures in the head.

"Back away, you Silvery Scoundrels!" She demanded, swinging the club in one's face and knocking it away.

"Mom!" Danny called out as he flew above a dozen claws trying to reach him. "Catch!"

He threw the keys, Maddie catching them in time. She then sat down and turned the ignition.

"Ready! Jack! Shoot the ceiling!" She called out.

"Hang on, Maddie! Trying to remember which does which!" Jack called out.

Maddie sent a disapproving scowl that required her to pull her hood down.

"You are never changing anything again without my approval again, do you hear me?!" She shouted.

Jack ignored that as he finally found the button that activated the cannon on top.

"Bingo!" Jack said.

"Okay, now shoot the ceiling! Aim for all the entrances except the one we came from!" Sam said.

Jack's grin remained but the look in his eyes made it clear he was confused.

"Right… umm… which one fired again?" He asks, looking at the buttons.

Everyone in the RV groaned.

"You didn't put the button to fire next to the button to activate the stupid cannon?!" Jazz asks.

"I didn't want someone stealing the RV to get things fast!" Jack defended.

"Does that include you?" Jazz questioned with an eyebrow raised.

As Jack tried to save face, Sam groaned.

"Oh for the love of Pete…" She took over pressing buttons, pushing each one slowly before finally finding it.

A shot from the roof cannon hit the ceiling, causing a piece of rock to almost crush a handful of aliens.

"Grruhkoh! Khgahkhh!" One Goblin went, pointing at the RV.

6 of them were alerted and stopped attacking Maddie and the truck in favor of going after the RV.

Seeing them on their way, Jack pulled out a blaster and started firing.

"Best start shooting the ceiling now!" Jack said.

Sam then figured out how to aim the cannon, shooting the ceiling and causing openings to start closing up.

"Prakka Greppa Natta!" One Goblin went, reacting to the exits being blocked.

"Natta kurppa prakka!" Another went, pointing at the RV.

Thinking fast as she saw them coming, Sam was about to try and aim the cannon at them before Jack pushed a button.

Suddenly, the side of the RV the Goblins were approaching had extended a comically large speaker that pushed them away.

"Huh… who would have thought Dad's emergency condensed speaker would actually be used for an emergency?" Jazz comments.

"Jazzy Pants! When I want to play some tunes that badly, that's totally an emergency!" Jack insists with a grin and thumb's up.

Sam then went back to firing, aiming the cannon at the caverns again and started firing. Each time she did, she caused the rocks to collapse and close them up.

Danny sucker punched a Goblin and smiled at the sight of the caverns closing.

"Maybe I can help with that." He said as he grabbed two Goblins by the "ears" and carried them with him as he flew up and threw them above the opening of one cavern.

The impact caused the rocky wall above to collapse, blocking it as well.

Dusting his hands, Danny fired blasts of energy from his hands, blasting the Goblins away from the RV so Sam can resume.

"Okay! A few more!" Sam said.

"Meantime… Someone take the wheel! I still got some space vermin I need to deal with!" Jack declared as he grabbed a Jack O' Nine Tails and ran out.

Jazz got in the driver's seat as she watched her father go running into the fight.

The aliens hissed as Jack swung his weapon to try and get them..

"G-GRAH KEEKO!" One Goblin snarled.

"Right back at ya! Whatever you said!" Jack shouted.

Snarling at him, the Goblin got on all fours and was about to leap when another Goblin was thrown and knocked into it by Danny.

Meanwhile, Sam was pressing the buttons repeatedly before recalling how big the area is and, with the ship gone, they had more room to drive.

"Can you get us that way?" Sam asks, pointing to her left.

"On it!" Jazz said as she floored it and sped up, knocking a few Goblins along the way. "Start shooting!"

"On it!" Sam said, pushing the buttons to fire.

With each shot, a cavern was sealed.

"Keep it up!" Tucker went, seeing the action.

As this went on, Danielle had something on her mind.

"So… what's going to happen when we leave them here? They're just gonna try digging themselves out." Danielle points out.

"Right… they clearly don't need to eat somehow, probably because of how they're made or whatever." Tucker points out.

Hearing that, Sam knew what they were hinting at but chose to ignore it.

"Let's just focus on this for now." She said, wanting to not think about it.

They stopped talking as she kept pressing the button.

Danny and his parents continued as Jack managed to swing one alien away with his weapon..

"HA! Take that, Space Scum! No one endangers Jack Fenton's world no matter what plane of existence they came from!" Jack said as he used the nine tails to hit two of them.

"Guwrbrhbrh!" One snarled.

"You get the horns when you mess with Jack Fenton! And I get probably doesn't make much sense if you don't get the context but I don't care!" He declared proudly as he knocked out some more.

"Nice shot, Dad..." Danny said as grabbed one by the 'ear' and punched it away.

They then noticed that all but one exit is block, the way they came.

"We have one way left to go. We're going to need to use the big guy." Maddie said.

Jack stopped, looking shocked.

"The big guy?! But we haven't tested its effect on ghosts yet! And it's our only prototype!" Jack points out.

"True, but it might be our only chance!" Maddie said.

Danny, holding a Goblin by the neck, heard them talk.

"The big guy?" He asks before swinging the alien away. "Who's that?"

"Not who, what. It's our working name for a bomb we designed to nullify ghosts. So far all we've done is make a really loud sonic bomb… but it might work to bury these things." Maddie said.

"And…" Jack then punched a Goblin before hitting it the ribs. "It's with us!"

"And… why is it all the way out of Amity Park with us and why didn't you mention it before? Heck, why did you guys bring any kind of bomb to a family reunion in the first place?" Danny asks.

"Umm… We'd… rather not say." Both of his parents said in unison.

"Well… if it was there, they might have taken it already." Danny points out.

"Oh… not true! I hid it in some place they wouldn't have known… and only I would know!" Jack said.

"You actually remember where?" Danny asks sarcastically.

"Yup!" Jack said. He reached for his butt pocket and pulled out a baseball sized metal device with green lines. "See!"

Danny only stared in disbelief before his eyes darted up to his dad.

"You had that thing… the whole time… pressed against your butt?" Danny asks.

"Yup! Ever since we left Amity Park. No worries… I barely felt anything!" Jack said with a grin.

Danny decided not to ask about it as his father pressed some buttons.

"Do you even remember how to use that thing?" Danny asks.

After a moment, the bomb started beeping.

"Okay, this baby is set to go off in 5 minutes, which means we gotta high tail it! Grab whatever they took and let's go!" Jack said.

"On it!" Danny said with a nod.

As he flew towards the pile of stolen items to carry to the truck, Jack saw some Goblins trying to attack Danny and caught them with the Jack O' Nine Tails.

"Don't think I forgot what you did to my wheels!" Jack shouted, swinging with all his might.

The Goblins he caught were released, only to be thrown onto an oncoming rush of others, knocking them down.

Danny decided to think fast using his ice power to freeze everything in one big chunk to carry.

"Let's go!" Danny said.

"We still have about 4 minutes! We gotta find a way to keep these things in!" Maddie points out.

Thinking fast, Danny pondered as an idea that could trap these space creeps for good.

"Everyone! Get through the only way out! I got an idea!" He said.

Though unsure of what he had in mind, they did as said, following him through the exit. Jack even hopped into the truck to stay with his wife.

Once through, the truck and RV braked hard.

"Now what?!" Jazz asks from the window.

Danny placed the large chuck of frozen stolen goods and aimed his hands at the opening as the Goblins started rushing.

"Please let my next aliens be less hostile…" He said under his breath as his hands glowed a bright blue.

He unleashed his biggest ice blast, creating a large wall from the ground up. The ice was forming, but not fast enough as two Goblins tried scaling it.

"Not a chance!" Maddie shouted as she and Jack fired their blasters, knocking the two back inside.

"Hurry up, Danny!" Jack shouted. "Three minutes to go!"

"I'm hurrying!" Danny insisted as he sealed the opening, but still continued. "Gonna make the ice thicker so they can't break through in time.

Danny stepped back as the stream continued.

Both Jack and Maddie watched in awe as they watched their son in action.

"Is this what all their adventures were like?" Maddie asks.

"No…" Sam spoke up, getting their attention. "Most of the time, it was more of us falling to near death or getting captured or ambushed by deranged ghosts with major psychological issues."

After about another minute, Danny finally stopped, lowering his arms in the process.

"That… should do it…" He said, tired as he walked towards the RV. "Let's go!"

As soon as he used intangibility to phase himself inside, landing face down and morphing to human form, that was it.

"Floor it!" Sam shouted.

Both vehicles sped off, getting as much distance between them and the ice as possible.

The Goblins, on their end, tried to claw their way out through the ice while others tried to dig through the rubble.

One Goblin picked up the bomb and tried to break, only for it not to work.

"Keeku?" It asked.

"Br-braka!" One shouted.

"Panunka!" The other responded.

They started fighting, acting like cats as they tackled into each other, rolling on the ground trying to claw the other as the bomb rolled away.

It stopped at the feet of three Goblins that were silent as they inched closer by bending over.

The beeping was accelerating and the lights were blinking faster.

Suddenly, the other Goblins reacted by trying to hasten their escape. They clawed faster, dug faster, but it was to no avail.

Suddenly, the lights remained on as one long beep happened.

"Krhk kru ghah…" One went, almost like it was muttering in an almost defeated tone.


The trucks sped up as fast as they could when it happened.

The cave began shaking, rocks falling from above, rocks jumping up, walls vibrating, and sounds of an explosion echoing from behind.

"Uh… why is an earthquake happening?" Danielle asks as she clung to her seat.

"I think that's the bomb." Jazz responded.

"Uh… can we speed up?!" Tucker asks, looking terrified.

"I never thought I'd say this about a gas guzzler but… please tell me this thing can go faster!" Sam shouted as she hung onto her seat.

"HOLD ON!" Jazz shouted.

Everyone held tight as both the RV and the truck sped as fast as they could, but the collapsing of the cave was catching up with them.

Danielle, seeing Danny looking unconscious, grabbed a nearby bottle of water and handed it to Tucker, who was closer to him.

"Tucker! Here!" She went urgently, looking desperate.

"Oh thanks…" He said as he happily drank it empty. "Ahh… cool and refreshing!" He said before noticing the angry look on Danielle's face. "What?" He asks.

"I MEANT POUR IT ON HIS FACE TO WAKE HIM UP!" She shouted.

"Oh… uhh…" Tucker then threw the bottle at Danny's face.

"Huh? Whaa?" Danny said, getting up and rubbing his head. "What happened? I passed out?"

"Okay, abridged version… in a cave starting to collapse, can you help us?!" Danielle asks.

"R-Right…" Danny said, getting up and morphing again. "I got this!"

He got up, looking desperate as he phased out the RV and pressed his hand on the wall. He holds out his arm for his parents in the truck. Seeing it, Jack, in the passenger seat, reached out for it.

Once Jack grabbed his son's hand, Danny closed his eyes and used his power.


Outside

The mine entrance collapsed. Crashes were heard as rocks slid down, blocking it. However, the sounds of engines were heard from the other side, getting louder.

The truck and the RV both phased out of the rubble, regaining tangibility after they were at least 20 feet away. Once that was done, they braked.

Danny got on his knees, panting a bit before getting up and morphing back to human form. His mother and father jumped out of the truck to help keep him standing.

"Son?" Jack asks.

"Are you alright, Sweetie?" Maddie asks.

"I'm fine… sorta." He said, dusting himself off.

Sam, Jazz and Tucker left the RV, with Danielle being forced to remain sitting as the door slid open.

All of them observed with somber looks, wondering if it was all over now.

"So… is that it? Are they… are they even alive?" Sam asks.

There was an awkward silence, Sam herself looking troubled before Maddie cleared her throat.

"Well… regardless… it might take forever for those things to find a way out, assuming they weren't crushed." She points out.

Everyone seemed troubled about that, as even though they survived and won, the fact of what they did to win still clung to them.

"I… I don't like what we just did…" Sam admits, looking away.

To her surprise, Maddie Fenton approached her and sent her an understanding look.

"It's okay… I actually wished we didn't have to come to this. But… it's clear they wouldn't have given in…" She points out.

"They wouldn't have… compromised…" Sam was forced to admit.

"Like her with driving the RV." Tucker points out.

Sam's eyes widened in shock before she sent a cold glare.

"I thought we agreed to… never… speak of that… again…" She said with an angry snarl.

"Ahh! She's totally gonna off me to hide it now!" Tucker screamed as he hid behind Jazz.

She rolled her eyes as Maddie realized what she just heard.

"Wait… you drove the RV? Something that takes up 10 miles a gallon?" She asks.

"I modified it so that it's 15 actually!" Jack said with a hand and finger up before he noticed his wife's glare. He lowered said hand. "Not the point. Got it…"

"Well… someone… had to do something…" Sam admits.

Maddie felt a little guilty now for her earlier snapping at Sam.

"I guess… I was a little more hostile than I needed to be earlier…" Maddie admits.

"No… you were right… I shouldn't have ran off. I'm so used to doing things my way and defying parents that… I forgot not every parent is like mine, or that adults know things better than I do." Sam admits.

Maddie took in a breath before patting Sam on the shoulder.

"Okay then…" She said.

"Now what?" Sam asked.

"Now we return the stuff those invaders took." Jack explained.

"Not exactly. The crew on the ship, I didn't see their bodies in the fire." Danny pointed out.

"Fire?" Sam asks.

"Later." Maddie steps in before continuing with what Danny said. "Maybe they were destroyed? I mean, they melt when hit fatally."

"I don't think so. I didn't even see their suits. Plus, I couldn't find the cores of the ship and those things are kinda indestructible." Danny said as he looked out to the forest.

"What are you thinking?" Jazz asks.

"I'll… go look for them." Danny answered her.

"And what'll you do if you find them?" Sam asks.

Danny was silent, knowing what he'll have to do but chose his words carefully.

"I'll…give them one last chance since they have no way off Earth… without our help and agreeing to our terms, at least." He answered.

"Let me come along." Danielle insists.

"Sweetie, no. You're still hurt." Maddie insisted.

"I'm fine, I- ow!" Danielle went, having tried to stand but sat back down, hissing in pain. "Fine…" She went in a defeated tone.

As Maddie tended to her, Danny sent them a serious look.

"You guys take care of this." He turned his head towards the forest before morphing. "I have some Goblins to find…"

As Danny flew off, they had no idea someone was watching. Someone who was far enough and hid behind a tree.

All that could be made out was this figure was in shadows and wore what looked like a fedora hat. This figure lowered his head and watched as Danny fly above the trees.


Special thanks to Flower princess11 for helping me.

We have 3 chapters left.

Invader Johnny: That was a Goblin, not their leader.

RonaldM40196867: Thanks but I'm not sure on that. Also, yes, he'd rather be anywhere his in-laws aren't.

Fiction Realm: That's true. I did have that scene in mind. Also yes, Flaming Homer.

LockAndKey989: Well, they don't actually live there, only Zeke and Betty-Jo. They'd probably just want Jack to do it himself.

SoundVenom: Hope you liked this.

Leonardo: It's cool, we all have issues.

SuperiorBatman1: We'll see...

Black Momba: Interesting theory.

Red Ron: They do care, it's just they'll find any excuse to disrespect Jack.