“Night-time to daytime.” Mackenzie gave him the go-ahead. She moved her hand indicating he should do something.

The man shrugged his shoulders. “Back,” he said, and the passageway did exactly that, but Mackenzie stayed behind.

“Stop,” he said and the passageway stopped.

Mackenzie walked up to him. “It works, but I think we need to include the word “together” so we move as a unit.”

The man nodded. “You’re right. It really is simple, isn’t it? Really, we’re just telling some powerful, higher intelligence what we want to do and it happens.” The man smiled and shook his head. “Wow!”

Mackenzie stared at the man. He seemed to be in his element, in an environment that offered different rules and laws, maybe new beginnings, all things that her Lord provided. She asked the Lord for strength and understanding and praised His mighty name.

“Maybe others have also ended up in here—let’s go and look for them. We might find a way out.”

The world of nature ambled on outside in silence. Inside, silence also surrounded them, no ambient sounds except for the occasional sucking sound accompanied by faint screams.

“By the way, my name is Joshua.”

“Mine’s Mackenzie.” She thought about keeping her guard up with this man, but the thought dissolved before it had any time to linger. Such thoughts didn’t belong in the environment they had found themselves in. It was like wrong thoughts had nothing to attach themselves to.

“All tunnels go somewhere. Wonder where this one goes?”

“I’m sure we’ll find out,” Mackenzie replied.

They passed what looked like a winery. Wallabies fed on the lush grass that lined the grapevines. A few metres on, they saw flashing lights. It looked like a car accident. Joshua walked right up against the invisible wall, Mackenzie beside him. The wall moved forward with them, so they stepped forward again, closer to the accident.

They watched an emergency worker leaning over a man, pressing his chest down and up.

“Show us what happened here, please.” Mackenzie asked.

Joshua turned to Mackenzie as if to respond.

Mackenzie pointed toward the scene; Joshua turned.

They saw a car driving up the hill and a four-wheel drive coming down the hill. The four-wheel drive moved over to the wrong side of the road, the driver distracted by something, his eyes off the road. They heard the impact.

Mackenzie felt a wave of bad vibrations. The emotions of those involved, perhaps. “Back, please. This is unsettling and too hard to comprehend.”

The present returned. Mackenzie and Joshua saw others coming to the aid of the emergency worker. They watched as the emergency worker stood up, shaking his head. It was like watching a television show. Could she do anything? It looked like the person had died.

They heard voices singing, indescribable singing, like worship. They saw blurred figures coming. Mackenzie sensed a peace that she had never experienced before. Three angelic beings came into focus, circling the person lying on the ground, and then something departed from the person. The angels encircled their arms around the entity, and then they were gone.

Joshua looked at Mackenzie, “What was that?”

“I think we just witnessed what happens at death. I would also say that person was a Christian, and is now in good hands.” It was a privilege to witness.

Mackenzie and Joshua left the scene and progressed further along the passageway. They passed a number of houses and entered some kind of business park. A large number of buildings occupied one area, and Mackenzie worked out that it was a hospital.

A splash-like noise caught their attention. They turned in the direction of the noise as bony green arms and legs penetrated the invisible wall and appeared in the passageway. There were three of them, and they carried something, a person. The beings sensed the presence of others and slowly turned and looked at Mackenzie and Joshua with their glowing red eyes. They returned their gaze to the dark side and floated in that direction, their torn and dirty robes flowing behind them. One set of red eyes had a last look at Mackenzie and Joshua before they pushed the person with them into the darkness and were gone. Screams came from the darkness, and then faded.

Mackenzie called on the blood of the Lamb. She felt no fear. “I think we now know for certain that hell exists, and it sounds like a place of torment.”

Joshua seemed transfixed.

Not long after, they came across what appeared to be a retirement village where they encountered another death. Sadly, this person was also escorted to the dark place by the same strange-looking creatures.

“I haven’t really thought about death,” Joshua said.

“I’m a Christian, Joshua. I have thought about death, but not the way we’re seeing things here. If anything, my faith is being consolidated.”

“I think I’m a Christian too, Mackenzie.”

Mackenzie was about to ask Joshua to expand on what he just said when they came across more flashing lights. This time it was police cars and they were blocking access into a park area. A small pocket of bushland looked to be marked off. They stopped and looked at the scene.

Mackenzie looked at Joshua. “Want to see what happened here?”

“May as well.”

“Show us what happened here, please.”

They saw a person staring up at a tree. Mackenzie looked up and saw the red shirt. She gasped.

Mackenzie found it hard but she wanted to see. They took it back further and saw Paul tumbling out of the sky, into the trees. Mackenzie bowed her head.

Voices and singing prompted Mackenzie to raise her head. Three angelic beings came into view, floating up the tree, circling the body that lay tangled in the branch, arms covering, enfolding. They were passing and one angel looked towards Mackenzie and spoke to his companions. Two angels floated up with Paul and were gone. The remaining angel came towards Mackenzie.

“Do not be afraid. I am one of the ministering angels sent by God to protect one of his chosen ones in life and death. The chosen one has gone to sleep, and the other angels have taken his spirit into God’s presence. But your presence here is not right. This passage separates the natural from the spiritual world. It is used to take the departed to be with the Father. You are here without your angels. How did you get here?”

“Sir, we aren’t sure,” Joshua said. “We were taken hostage by some crazy people with some new technology and they have been zapping us here and there. I, for one, have no idea what’s going on and I’m not even sure if you’re real.”

“Oh, he’s real,” Mackenzie said. Why were there no tears? Instead, there were feelings of love, of peace.

The angel looked and smiled at Mackenzie. “The Father has revealed to me that you are one of His. He tells me that He loves you, Mackenzie, and you are not to fear, for this will all come to an end soon.”

The angel turned towards the man. “But you young man, the Lord knows you and loves you and wants all to be saved. You are still under the condemnation of God because your sins have not been covered by the atoning blood of Christ. You can still be saved. Listen to Mackenzie: she will explain things to you.”

The angel turned towards the dark side. “But, be warned. The dark side is where the souls of the lost go when they die. They do pass through a bright light, but it is on the way to a place of torment—there they stay until Judgement Day. You have been warned. Repent and be saved.”

Mackenzie watched Joshua’s reaction to this. She knew that he had been given a reprieve that many didn’t get.

The angel turned to Mackenzie. “I must go now, Mackenzie Gordon. Your ministering angels are on their way. Mackenzie, it is not sad news, for Paul is with the Father now. It was his spirit we have just retrieved. You know for certain where he is and you know it is a better place. Be in peace about it. He is home.”

Still no tears, but love and peace flooded her mind. There are no tears in heaven. She watched the angel float above their heads, and then depart. A thin veil separated them. She continued to watch as more mighty angels appeared.

“Hello, loved one. We are your ministering angels. We have been with your body, wondering where your spirit had departed to. You are away from your physical body at the moment. But the Father does not want that to remain. You will see us for but a short time. But know this: we will be with you forever.”

An angel stood next to Joshua who had his head bowed and was shaking. Mackenzie walked over to Joshua. She prayed silently, thanking the Lord for starting a work in Joshua’s heart. “Joshua, you have a lovely name. Did you know that the Greek translation of your name is Jesus? Let me tell you about him.”

Chapter 23