I put a lot of humor into this chapter! I hope it's worth it.
If you wish to draw fanart for this fic, you're welcome to do so. I'd love to see what you guys come up with!
Enjoy!
Chapter 14
Three Surprise Guests
The BAU had been wandering around the Ghost Zone well into the afternoon with no luck at all. Everyone was getting irritated from the fact that they hadn't found Sam yet.
"If we have to run into that annoying 'Box Ghost' again I'm going to blast it to kingdom come," Hotch said through gritted teeth.
Phantom, who had taken a break in the Specter Speeder, agreed with the profiler. "You'd be doing both me and the Ghost Zone a huge favor," he said.
"I agree with Phantom," said Morgan. "Seriously, what kind of ghost controls boxes and bubble wrap?"
"There's a haunt for everything," JJ's voice said on the Fenton Phones.
"Does anyone even fear the Box Ghost?" asked Reid.
"Nah. He's hardly a threat even with his boxes," Tucker's voice answered.
"I don't think even my son would be afraid of him," Hotch muttered.
"Unless he stole Pandora's Box again," Phantom added. Hotch heard what he said and chose not to ask.
"Real world items detected," the voice from the dashboard said.
"'Real world items'?" Rossi repeated.
"Items from our world that somehow wound up in the Ghost Zone," Phantom explained. The radar on the dashboard showed silhouettes of five familiar people. "Looks like we're finally making progress."
"Be careful, my Ghostbusters," warned Garcia. "If what my apprentice says is true than…bbzzzz…out…bzzzpffft…tech…bzzz…zone…"
"Sorry, Penelope, can you repeat that?" asked Emily.
The Speeder than began descending from the green sky at a fast rate. Alarms were beeping; everything was shutting down. Hotch pulled on the controls to try to make the landing as painless as possible. 'Now I know how Captain Sullenberger felt on Flight 1549!'
"Everyone, grab onto me!" Phantom ordered without thinking. Reid, not wanting to die in this unusual place, was the first to grab hold of Phantom's arm. Morgan and Prentiss looked at each other, shrugged and grabbed Phantom's other arm. Hotch was still trying to get control of the aircraft. "Agent Hotchner, let's go!"
"You can't carry all of us," Hotch reasoned.
"Hotch, come on!" Prentiss pleaded as she grabbed the equipment bag full of Anti-Creep Sticks.
"Hotch, if we don't get out of here now, we're toast!" Morgan exclaimed.
Hotch refused to budge. "If I let go of the controls, we could go into a tailspin!"
Phantom had enough of Hotch's stubborn attitude. "HOTCH, TRUST ME LIKE YOU SAID AND LET GO!" the hybrid yelled. He overheard Hotch's argument with the GIW the other night and had a feeling that Hotch meant every word.
That was enough to convince the profiler. No one but his teammates addressed him like that. For a kid to address him by his nickname meant that he wasn't kidding about the situation at hand. Hotch reluctantly released the controls and grabbed Phantom's arm (the same arm Reid was hanging onto). As the Specter Speeder began to lose more altitude, Phantom then turned the entire BAU onboard intangible and phased them out of the aircraft. The Speeder then crashed into a tree, fell out of it and the power died.
Phantom gently landed on the ground and everyone became tangible again. Everyone looked up and saw a firework blow up in the sky.
Penelope Garcia was beginning to panic. She tried multiple times to locate her friends in the Ghost Zone after the signal was lost. One moment they were on her radar, the next moment they were gone.
"What happened? Where are my babies?" she asked in a panic. "How did they pull a Houdini right under my nose?"
Tucker, Rossi, and JJ were also trying to stay calm (Jazz lured Maddie and Jack to the park, saying that there was a ghost there).
"They must have found Aragon's hideout," Tucker assumed.
"Which means that modern technology won't work where they are, correct?" Rossi clarified.
"Yep," said Tucker. "They're going to have to fight old-school."
Garcia winced at that news. "You mean they're going to have to use swords, maces, cannons, and bows and arrows to fight?" she asked nervously.
"That's how people in medieval times fought," said JJ. "This is nothing like 'the Legend of Zelda'. No hearts, no fairies, nothing."
"If only…" Garcia sighed.
Aragon barged into the gathering hall dragging Paulina in with him. Sam palm-faced. She had a strong feeling Paulina would screw up the plan.
"Why was your lady-in-waiting in the courtyard instead of your 'bridal shower'?" Aragon asked Sam in a dangerous tone.
Sam started sweating nervously. "Uh…what was she doing there?" she asked innocently.
"She was launching a firework prematurely," Aragon growled.
"Um…fireworks are…part of the…whole thing," Sam stuttered. "Where I come from…it's normal to launch fireworks at bridal showers."
Aragon sneered at his bride. "You've lollygagged long enough. It's time for the ceremony." He snapped his fingers and some chambermaids came and took Sam to get changed along with her "ladies-in-waiting".
"How did you get caught?" Valerie hissed at Paulina the moment they were alone.
"I chipped a nail," Paulina defended. "Plus have you tried to run in these hoop skirts? NOT EASY!"
"You mean that you got caught because you were trying to fix a chipped nail?" Sam asked angrily as Ashley and Star helped her get undressed.
"In a life-or-death situation, my nails are the least of my concern," said Valerie.
"Next to my hair and my skin, my nails are my life," said Paulina.
Star grimaced at the wedding dress that was meant for Sam. "EEEWWW! This is way too poofy to be a wedding dress!" she exclaimed.
"I prefer something that looks like Kate Middleton's wedding dress thank you very much," Sam remarked. "Without the long train, of course."
"At least she has taste," muttered Ashley.
"Remind me again why we're getting Sam into this puffball?" said Star.
"Because if we don't, barbeque is going to be served at the wedding reception," answered Valerie. "And I can tell you right now it isn't going to be animal meat."
Knowing Valerie meant them, Star squeaked in fear and continued getting Sam into the dress. "Think you can go as slowly as possible?" the Goth asked.
"I can try."
"This will be a wedding no one shan't forget," Aragon's voice could be heard from the hallway. Valerie tiptoed towards the door that was slightly open ajar and looked out. "My bride is getting prepared at this moment. She is a human by the way."
"A human, you say?" asked a female voice. Valerie saw that three unusual people were following Aragon. What was unusual about them was that they were also human.
The woman who spoke earlier looked to be in her late-20s or early 30s. She had long dark hair that was tied in a French braid. She was wearing a forest green long-sleeve shirt with a navy blue skirt that went down to her feet.
A man, wearing knight armor, was following the woman, although he did look uncomfortable walking in it. He had a buzz cut with tan skin and matching brown eyes. Valerie guessed he was somewhere in his 30s. He carried his helmet under his arm.
The other man, who appeared to be a friar, looked to be about the woman's age. He was tall with a lanky build. His shaggy brown hair made him look even younger than he appeared to be.
"This will be a memorable wedding indeed," said Aragon. "Not only will I have a human bride but I have humans as some of my guests. I must ask you, Friar Spencer, would you do the honors and be the clergyman for my wedding?"
The knight elbowed the friar to get him to answer. "Oh! Uh, sure…Your Highness. I'll do it…but only if Lady Emily and Sir Derek attend as well," said the friar.
Aragon grinned. "Of course."
The BAU took in their surroundings. It looked ten times gloomier than Dora's kingdom. The sky was cloudy and dull; no breeze was felt.
"Now what?" said Emily. "Our only way out of this place can't work in this area. Even if we rescue the girls there's still the matter of getting them out of the Ghost Zone and I doubt Phantom can carry everyone."
"I've carried a lot of people at once but never at long distances," said Phantom.
"So, theoretically we save the girls," said Morgan, "what then? The Speeder is down for the count."
Reid looked around, deep in thought. "His mind is in the Middle Ages…" he muttered. "Tech-free zone…" Something then clicked in the young genius's mind. "Phantom, you said that Dora's kingdom used to be a tech-free zone, right?"
Phantom blinked. "Yeah, why?"
"How were you able to get technology to work there again?"
"Dora blew fire at the clouds which made them disappear. Afterwards, time began to move forward and our equipment started to work again," Phantom explained.
Reid took a moment to get these facts straightened out in his head. "I think we're in some kind of time barrier," he assumed. "Here, time stands still. Our technology is useless here so we'll have to fight the old-fashioned way, meaning we use swords, archery, and whatnot. If we can somehow get Aragon to dispel the time barrier, technology should work again and we'll be able to get out of here."
"Okay, so how are we going to get Aragon to get rid of the barrier?" asked Prentiss.
"We'll figure that out later," said Hotch. "Right now I want to find the girls and get them out of that castle."
"I don't think Agent Hotchner and I should go in with you," said Phantom. "Aragon knows what we look like. If he sees us, it's curtains for everyone."
Hotch did not like that idea. "I'm not going to stand idly by and let everyone get in harm's way to rescue those girls."
Phantom thought about this for a moment. He then got an idea and went to the Specter Speeder. A box of clothes was hidden in the back. "I knew these would come in handy," he muttered.
"Where did you get the clothes?" asked Reid.
Phantom gave Reid a sly smile. "I thought we might need disguises so I asked Dora if she could lend some clothes to us," the hybrid explained.
Moments later Reid, Morgan and Prentiss were dressed as a friar, a knight and a lady. Phantom donned pieces of armor he wore last time he fought Aragon. He even gave Hotch a pair of gauntlets for him to fight with (Hotch figured that weapons made in the Ghost Zone would be better to use in this case).
Phantom and Hotch would sneak into the back while Reid, Emily and Morgan would distract Aragon and try to delay the wedding as long as possible.
"Do you really think your plan is going to work?" Hotch asked skeptically as he watched his teammates walk toward the front entrance.
Phantom chuckled. "He hasn't met your teammates so they're our best chance at finding Sam and the others and getting them out of there. If Aragon saw us waltz up to his castle, he'd barbeque us." Phantom then changed into Fenton and walked towards the castle.
"Why did you change into a human?" asked Hotch.
"In the Ghost Zone, humans are the ghosts," Danny explained. "Try touching that tree," he said as he pointed to a nearby tree.
Hotch did so and saw that his hand phased right through it. He quickly pulled his hand back in shock. That was something he was not expecting at all. The two then sprinted towards the castle, making sure no one saw them.
Reid, Morgan and Emily walked towards the front of the castle only to be stopped by the castle guards. "Halt! Who goes there?" asked the captain of the guard.
Reid and Prentiss nudged Morgan forward to speak. "Uh…We heard that Prince Aragon needed a…clergyman," Morgan stuttered. "And it just so happened that…a friar was traveling with us. He's capable of performing wedding ceremonies."
The one-eyed captain studied the travelers closely and nodded. "Very well. Come with me. His Highness will be most grateful that we found a clergyman."
The three followed the guard and took in their surroundings. This castle looked more ruin-like than Dora's. The air was stale, like a breeze hadn't blown through the halls in ages.
"I feel like the Tin Man in this thing," Morgan growled.
"Right now I'd love to shake hands with the man who invented the air conditioner," Prentiss mumbled. "It's hotter than Phoenix on the hottest day of the year." Reid decided to not say anything for fear of blowing their cover due to his babbling.
Eventually, they made it to Aragon's study where he was being fitted for his wedding. "Your Highness, three travelers have come to attend your wedding," said the guard.
Aragon sneered at them. This was the first time the trio actually laid eyes on Aragon and he looked meaner than they imagined. "Send them to the dungeon. If they were not invited then they are trespassers," he said.
"My lord, one of them is a friar," the guard reasoned. "Would you like him to perform the ceremony?"
That caught Aragon's attention. He approached the three and studied them closely. "You three are human," he pointed out.
Prentiss stepped in. "My fiancée, Sir Derek Morgan, and I were going to elope and we came upon Friar Spencer who was willing to exchange our vows. Derek wanted to do it somewhere special and we somehow found ourselves here, wherever this place is," she fibbed. Morgan's eyes widened at that story. Reid was holding back his laughter.
Aragon bought it hook, line and sinker. "My apologies, milady," he said as he kissed Emily's hand sending shivers down her spine. "I am Prince Aragon. I am also having a wedding today."
Emily held back the urge to slap Aragon in the face. "I am Lady Emily Prentiss. This is my fiancée, Sir Derek Morgan and Friar Spencer."
Aragon shook hands with both men. "Come. We have much to discuss," he said as he left the study after dismissing the captain of the guard. The three undercover agents followed and tried to keep up with him. "This will be a wedding no one shan't forget," Aragon bragged. "My bride is getting prepared at this moment. She is a human by the way."
"A human, you say?" asked an intrigued Emily.
"This will be a memorable wedding indeed," said Aragon. "Not only will I have a human bride but I have humans as some of my guests. I must ask you, Friar Spencer, would you do the honors and be the clergyman for my wedding?"
Morgan elbowed Reid to get him to answer. "Oh! Uh, sure…Your Highness. I'll do it…but only if Lady Emily and Sir Derek attend as well," he said.
Aragon grinned. "Of course."
As Aragon and Reid talked about the ceremony, Morgan and Prentiss quietly discussed Aragon. "What do you think? He does have that intimidating vibe coming off him," whispered Emily.
"Those vibes must be coming from that amulet around his neck," Derek pointed out. "Phantom said that it turns him into a dragon whenever he gets moody."
"Which seems to happen quite often," Emily pointed out. Scorch marks and scratch marks were seen on the walls and ceiling of the hallways. They could only imagine what Aragon's dragon form was like.
ROFL! I thought Emily's story made a hilarious excuse to why they were in the Ghost Zone!
I'm glad Phantom and Hotch decided to put aside their differences for the sake of the case. Stay tuned for Chapter 15: Wedding Crashers!