"Whoa, not so fast!" Elizabeth exclaimed, "We have to get ready first." She pointed to the bedrooms. "First of all you boys will have to lose the modern clothing. In your bedrooms, you'll find clothes and sandals that will help you blend in with the other people of that time."
The Monkees went off to their bedrooms. Peter and Davy went to their downstairs bedroom, while Micky and Mike went to their upstairs room. Elizabeth called out.
"Make sure you take off everything that wouldn't exist over nineteen hundred years ago! That includes watches, rings and any other jewelry!"
"Can we keep our underwear on?" Micky called back.
Elizabeth rolled her eyes. "Yes, Micky. It won't be seen under your clothes."
A few minutes later, the Monkees came out of their bedrooms wearing ankle-length gray tunics with a rope belt and brown cloaks. They had leather sandals on their feet. While they were changing, Elizabeth had changed from her white dress to a light brown tunic, gray cloak and a gray headscarf.
"Can't say much for the tailoring or the colors." Mike remarked.
"Only the wealthy could afford to have dyed clothes back then Mike."
Elizabeth explained. "Regular people had to do with rough cloth.
Anyway, the last thing we want to do is attract attention to ourselves."
She walked over to Mike and pulled his wool cap off his head. Mike smiled sheepishly. Elizabeth then went over to each of the Monkees and touched their lips and ears.
"What was that for?" Micky asked.
"Now the four of you will be able to speak and understand the Hebrew language. Plus I've given you four descriptions of what Dr. Chronos and his men look like." The angel explained. "I've also placed in your minds the gospel's accounts of our Lord's passion. That way you four will be able to figure out ways Chronos and his men might try to alter things.
"What about writing?" Davy asked.
"It doesn't matter." Elizabeth explained, "If you're asked, just say you can't read or write. Most people back then were illiterate."
"Are we ready to go now?" Peter asked.
"I believe so." Elizabeth said, "But let me explain something. Traveling back through nineteen centuries of time will exhaust me. I'm going to need your strength to get us there. Once there, I'll be able to guide you, but you four will have to do the work until I get my strength back. Is that clear?"
"Its clear, Elizabeth." Micky replied, "Just tell us what needs to be done, and we'll do it."
The angel smiled. "All right then, form a circle and join hands with me."
The Monkees and Elizabeth did that. The angel spoke again, "Now, everybody concentrate on being in a garden in Jerusalem at night. Picture yourselves there....."
The four Monkees felt themselves join with Elizabeth. Everything grew very quiet and still.....
Suddenly, the five of them were no longer in the pad, there was darkness all around, they seemed to be floating, but nobody was afraid.....
In a rush, the Monkees and Elizabeth found themselves standing in a grove of trees in a garden at night. They were at the top of a slight hill, so they could see the rest of the garden.
The five of them let go of each other's hands, but Elizabeth began to collapse to the ground. Micky quickly caught her and gently picked her up and carried her over to a tree. He sat her down and leaned her back against the tree.
"Are you ok, Elizabeth?" Micky asked, concerned.
"I'm physically fine, Micky, but very tired." She replied in a whisper. "Luckily I had you four to support me in our journey."
"Are we really back in time?" Peter asked.
"Yes, in what would later be known as 33 a.d, give or take a year."
Elizabeth replied with a slight smile. "We're in the garden of Gethsemane on what would be later known in the Christian church as Holy Thursday."
She looked down the hill and the Monkees followed her gaze. From their vantage point, they saw someone with a torch lead a group of about a dozen people into the garden. Four of the people then broke off from the group while the others sat down to rest.
The four people went off a short distance, then a single solitary man left the other three behind and knelt down by a large rock.
Mike remembered what the gospels said and turned to Elizabeth.
"Is that Jesus?" Mike whispered, pointing to the kneeling man.
Elizabeth could only nod her head.
"Let's go warn him!" Peter said.
"No, Peter." Elizabeth said, "Don't you think he already knows? You four need to search the garden and look for Dr. Chronos and his men, and see if they are planning anything. This would be a good time for him to try and change things."
"Ok then," Mike said, "Peter and I will go in this direction, while Micky and Davy search over there."
"What about you, Elizabeth?" Micky asked.
"I'll be fine, Micky." She replied, "Go now, it won't be long before the soldiers come to arrest our lord." The angel drifted off to sleep.
So Mike and Peter went one way, while Micky and Davy went another.
Slowly, so as not to make any noise, the four of them searched the area for any sign of Dr. Chronos or his men. At the edge of the garden, Micky and Davy heard low voices-speaking English! They very slowly made their way over to a hedge and peeked through it.
On the other side of the hedge, Micky and Davy saw Dr. Chronos and his men, dressed like they were, set up what looked like fireworks.
There were several small tubes being set up to shoot the fireworks
into the sky. Micky and Davy looked at each other, puzzled as to
what Chronos would accomplish by setting off fireworks.
Doctor Chronos watched with satisfaction as the fireworks were carefully placed into the launching tubes. He and his men had actually arrived in this time a few days earlier and had set up a base in a cave in the nearby Kindron Valley. They had arrived at the garden as dusk fell so they could be ready when the soldiers came to arrest Jesus.
"Almost ready, gentlemen?" Dr. Chronos asked evilly.
"Just a few more wires to connect Dr. Chronos and all will be ready." Replied one of his men.
"Good, good!" Chronos said happily. "When those soldiers see all the fireworks going off in the sky, they'll think Jesus is doing it!
They'll think he's a sorcerer and run off! HAHA!"
The other men laughed too. One of the men spoke up.
"If Jesus isn't arrested, then he can't die on the cross!"
"And the Christian religion will not be founded!" Dr. Chronos
finished gleefully.
Micky and Davy looked at each other in horror. Then without a word, they raced back to tell the others. They arrived back at the tree where Elizabeth was sleeping just as Mike and Peter were returning.
While Micky quickly explained what Chronos was planning, a large group of soldiers led by a single man entered the garden. The men who had been sleeping quickly got up to confront the soldiers. A ruckus was breaking out down below them.
"We have to get back to Chronos right now!" Micky shouted.
The Monkees quickly ran to the hedge where Chronos and his men were hiding. They were watching the scene below them play out. One of the men had his hand on the fire button. The four Monkees looked at each other. There was no time for a fancy plan right now, so Mike simply pointed through the hedge. The other three nodded.
Taking a deep breath, the Monkees gave a yell and charged through the hedge and into the clearing where Chronos and his men were.
Without stopping, Micky kicked over the tubes holding the fireworks, while Davy pulled out the wires from the detonator.
Mike and Peter simply crashed into the very surprised men and knocked them down.
The surprise was total and complete. Within seconds, the gear was smashed to pieces and Dr. Chronos and his men were lying on the ground covered in mud.
Satisfied everything was in shambles, Mike yelled to the other Monkees, in English, "Split up and meet back at the tree!"
The four Monkees ran off in four different directions, leaving the
five mud-covered men cursing and swearing at them.
Meanwhile, below them another scene played out, just as it was supposed to.
Judas, one of the Jesus' twelve apostles, came over and said, "Hail, Rabbi," and kissed Jesus.
"Judas," Jesus replied, "Do you betray the son of man with a kiss?"
He turned to the soldiers. "Have you come out as against a robber, with swords and clubs to seize me? Day after day I sat teaching in the temple area, yet you did not arrest me. But all this has come to pass that the writing of the prophets may be fulfilled."
At that, Jesus' disciples ran off in several directions. The
soldiers arrested Jesus, bound him and led him away.
The Monkees arrived back at the tree where Elizabeth sat to find her awake and watching the scene play out below her. Even in the dark, they could see the great sadness in her eyes.
"Elizabeth," Mike said softly, "We..."
"I know what you boys did, Mike." Elizabeth said sadly, her eyes not leaving the scene below. "You boys did well."
"Well, that's it, right?" Peter asked. "Jesus has been arrested and will be crucified tomorrow, so we're done...right?" Elizabeth shook her head. "No Peter, its not done. There are several more opportunities for Dr. Chronos and his men to try and free Jesus from captivity. We have to stay in this time until the end."
"Until Jesus dies?" Davy asked.
Elizabeth simply nodded.
In another part of the garden, five very angry men were trying to clean up after the unexpected attack from the Monkees.
Dr. Chronos swore a blue streak as he paced back and forth watching the others gather up the smashed gear.
"Who were those men?" He demanded, "How did they know what we were going to do?"
"They must be from our own time, Dr. Chronos." One of his men named Mark replied. "One of them spoke English."
"True." Dr. Chronos replied, coming to a stop. "It must be an enemy of our benefactor that sent them back to stop us. But they won't succeed! I won't let them succeed!" He yelled. "Mark and Larry, you two take the gear back to our base. Henry and Ian, you two will come with me to Caiaphas' house. Larry and Mark, you two will meet us there. Meanwhile the three of us will put plan B into action."
Larry and Mark did what they were told and Dr. Chronos and the other
two left their hiding place and followed the group of soldiers
taking Jesus away.
From their own vantage spot, the Monkees and Elizabeth watched as Simon Peter and another disciple follow the soldiers from a far distance. Then they saw Dr. Chronos and two of his men follow as well.
"We must follow them." Elizabeth said quickly. "We have to keep an eye on them."
Without any prompting, Micky picked Elizabeth up and soon the five of them were on their way into Jerusalem.