CONVERGENCE

The arena was packed, and the atmosphere was electric.

A muffled thump went unnoticed, drowned out by the music. A few people glanced briefly in the direction of the sound, but everyone was caught up in the momentum of dancing and singing along with the band onstage.

Abby picked up the cardboard tray with her soft pretzel and Dan’s container of popcorn on it and turned away from the concession stand. She made her way along the concourse, nodding her head and humming along with the music.

As she reached the top of the concrete stairs in Section 250, heading back down to her seat, the floor trembled under her feet. A split second later, she heard a thump somewhere behind her. She stopped, confused. Maybe the noises and shaking were caused by some kind of construction accident. The building renovations and additions had been heavily promoted and publicized. But would the construction crew be working in the background during a concert?

Another larger tremor rippled through the building. The movement brought the concert to an abrupt standstill. People murmured, and the music stopped as the band members faltered in confusion.

An earthquake? Here? Now?

Two deafening booms echoed from the northeastern and southwestern corners of the building. This time, the building trembled and shuddered like it had been struck with a giant sledgehammer.

Abby staggered and fell, landing on her knees, as the floor heaved beneath her. The concession tray fell from her hands, sending the pretzel and popcorn flying.

She lifted her head, and gasped in shock at the horrific sight that lay before her. Smoke billowed from Sections 103 and 228. Where there had been stairs and seats and people singing and dancing, now there were flames, thick and choking smoke, smoldering pieces of metal and plastic and concrete, and massive amounts of blood and flesh and gore.

The building popped, creaked, and groaned. Abby stared, frozen in shock and horror, as a portion of the second level near section 224 collapsed and fell. A massive cloud of dust and grit billowed as seats, bodies, metal, and concrete crashed down, burying and crushing ten rows of seats, their occupants, and several concession stands on the concourse.

Screams erupted as panicked people took off running, pushing and shoving one another as they fought to get to safety.

“Dan!” Abby screamed. “Daniel!” She frantically scrambled back up onto her feet, and spun around, searching wildly. Then she spotted him down below her, near their seats, trying to climb over rows of seats and push through a mass of people. His face and the front of his shirt were covered with blood. He looked up, saw her, and waved frantically, motioning her away and urging her to flee.

Before Abby could decide whether to stay with him or move, she was swept up into the human tidal wave surging through the building – a yelling, screaming mob of people fighting their way towards the exits.

Another massive explosion erupted somewhere behind her. The blast’s concussion threw her forward, slamming her against a wall.

Sections of the steel-paneled roof, lights, and ductwork crashed down onto the stands and the floor below. Through the ringing in her ears, Abby heard anguished screams welling up from the crowd.

The huge building was trembling violently now. The terrorists’ strategically-positioned explosives had done their job, weakening the structure and creating a domino effect. The weight of falling debris would do the rest of the work, collapsing and crushing what was below it.

Her fingers scrabbled wildly against the wall, searching for a handhold as she struggled to stay on her feet. Falling would mean being trampled under the stampeding feet of the crowd.

A sparking electrical wire somewhere in the rubble met a ruptured gas line. The concussion from the fiery blast launched her off of her feet. She felt a stabbing, searing pain in her chest… then nothing.

/ / / / / /

A dark-haired man climbed through the rubble, his eyes watering from dust and acrid smoke. The sounds of creaks and crashes from shifting debris, crackling and hissing of smoldering fires, and moans and screams from injured people all mingled in a cacophony of horror. Silhouettes and voices maneuvered through the obstacle course, trying desperately to reach exits and safety.

Luke stared at the devastation all around him. “Eli? Gabriel? Michael?” he called out.

Eli’s blond head popped up from behind a twisted pile of concrete and metal rebar. “I’m over here.” He picked his way through the mess until he reached Luke’s side.

“I thought I left the evil and death and destruction behind in Afghanistan and Iraq. Not here,” Luke said quietly, grimacing.

Eli shook his head, no, you didn’t.

“God, help me!” a man’s voice cried out. It was hoarse, weak, desperate. Eli’s head turned in the direction of the sound, and his blue eyes flashed angrily.

Luke tripped over a steel beam. He stared at the body in front of him. A young woman leaned against a broken slab of concrete under the beam. Her legs stuck out in front of her, her jeans torn and covered in a layer of dust. Her blue sweater was two-toned, with red blood soaking the lower half and turning it purple. Luke’s gaze fell on a large chunk of iron rebar protruding from the right side of her chest. She wasn’t just sitting against the concrete; she was pinned against it by the rod impaling her.

She was pale and motionless. Then he saw a single tear trailing down her cheek. Her left foot twitched slightly, poking out from under another chunk of concrete.

Her eyes fluttered open, closed again, then opened wider. Her gaze fell on Luke, her brown eyes glassy and unfocused, clouded with pain and shock.

He dropped to one knee and knelt next to her, picking up her hand. Her fingers curled, weakly grasping his hand.

“Help me,” she whispered hoarsely, between rasping breaths. “Please… move…”

He stared at the metal rebar. “I can’t. I know if I pulled you off of that… the bleeding…”

She shook her head no. “My legs… H-hurts…”

Then he noticed the jagged piece of concrete wedged awkwardly under her right hip, and the piece of metal protruding from the concrete and pressing against her leg.

Eli had disappeared again. Luke looked around, and spotted him kneeling next to a man who was pinned underneath several huge metal beams. Luke motioned to him. Eli made his way over to the two of them.

“What’s your name?” Luke asked.

“Abigail… Abby,” she answered.

“I’m Luke, and this is Eli.”

Together, they carefully worked the offending piece of concrete loose from under her hip. Eli dropped it next to the metal beam. He looked at her left shoe, protruding from under more slabs of concrete. “Let’s get some more of this off of you.” Slowly, they lifted the pieces of concrete, heaved them away, and uncovered her legs. From the knee down, the left leg of her jeans was soaked with blood. Eli knelt down and tenderly brushed bits of debris away from the wounds. His hands were warm against her cold, clammy skin.

“Thank you,” she managed.

She looked down at the rebar, and the blood soaking the front of her shirt, staring at it dazedly.

Two tears fell from her eyes, mixing with mascara and leaving runny black streaks down her pale cheeks.

Her body jerked suddenly as she coughed. Her cough turned to gagging, then an agonized cry. Flecks of blood appeared in the corners of her mouth.

“I’ll be right back,” Luke said quietly. He moved to stand up, but her fingernails dug into his arm with a surprisingly strong grip.

“Please… don’t leave me.”

“I won’t. I’m not leaving. I’m just going over there to get something.” He pointed to the demolished kitchen and concession stand. “Eli will stay right here with you. I’ll be right back. Don’t go anywhere.” She released her grip on his hand. He wasn’t sure, but he thought he saw a faint smile at his feeble attempt at humor.

Luke picked his way through the debris, stepping over the motionless and partially buried bodies of two concession-stand workers. The kitchen sink and wash area had been crumpled under a huge fallen I-beam. Broken pipes spewed water across the floor, puddles mingling with blood and dust. Luke found two towels, soaked them in the water, and made his way back.

“I told you I’d come back. Glad you decided to stick around for me.”

Blood trickled from her lip as she smiled weakly. “Funny.”

Luke draped one of the towels around the back of her neck, grasped a corner of the second one, and began gently wiping the dust, soot, makeup, tears, and blood from her face.

Several seconds passed in silence. Then, “I-I-I’m going… to die… aren’t I…?”

“Help is on the way,” Luke said. “As soon as the emergency crews get here, they’ll bring their tools, cut that bar away from the concrete, and get you to a hospital.” He cocked his head. “I think I can hear sirens now. They’re getting closer. They’ll be here soon.”

Her expression said that she knew he was avoiding the question.

She squeezed her eyes shut, holding back her tears, her lower lip quivering. “Dan… m-my boyfriend… my parents…. I just want to go home.”

“Where is home?” Eli asked.

“Iowa. Farm country.”

“How did you end up in California?”

“School. UCLA.”

She moved ever so slightly, then cried out from the pain. Eli ran a soothing hand over her shoulder. He could hear the rattling wheeze in her chest from her lungs filling with blood.

“S-scared,” she choked out. “Please… d-don’t leave.”

“We won’t. I promise. We’re not going anywhere.” Luke moved as close as possible, pressing his body against hers, and slid an arm around her shoulders. Eli took her hand in one of his, and gently rested his other hand on her forehead.

She closed her eyes for several moments, breathing slowly, apparently gathering strength to speak clearly. “Wanted… to leave our tiny little town and… s-see the world,” she whispered. “Aunt and uncle l-live out h-here... I fell in love with California… decided to go to college here… new place, new people, new adventures… spreading m-my wings.”

Her head was heavy on Luke’s shoulder now, her skin growing more pale and clammy.

“Considering how crazy the world is today, life in a tiny rural town doesn’t sound so bad,” he said.

“I’m… only twenty-two,” she said. “I’ve never gone anywhere… never even left Iowa until I came here. I... wanted to travel the world… spend more time with Dan… get married someday, hopefully to him… have kids…” More tears trailed down her cheeks. She was trembling harder now, her teeth chattering.

“What if I told you that you’ll get to do all of those things? All the good things that ever were, or are, or ever will be – things that you haven’t even dreamed of – will be yours to experience and enjoy forever.”

She looked at him quizzically. “What do you mean?”

“Heaven. That’s what Heaven is. Peace. Love. No grief or pain or separation or sickness or anything. All the good things, all the dreams that we had in this life. Perfection.”

Abby coughed again, a harsh, hacking sound. Her body jerked, and her cough turned into a gurgling scream. Blood spilled from her mouth, down her chin and onto Luke’s shirt.

Eli gripped her hand. Luke clutched her, holding her tightly, trying to keep her from moving and causing herself even more agony.

Finally, her choking subsided. Luke pulled the damp towel from around her neck and tenderly wiped her face, cleaning off the splattered blood.

Her head lolled to one side, and her eyelids fluttered.

She stared at the necklace around Eli’s neck. The cross was made out of two metal nails wrapped with red wire, hanging on a piece of black cord. The cord was damp with sweat and droplets of water from a broken pipe that he had walked under, and the cross was smudged with dirt. Then she turned her head slightly to glance up at Luke. Her gaze was drawn to the cross that he wore. This one was small, gold, hanging on a delicate chain. It gleamed in the light.

“Cold,” she moaned. “I’m cold... so cold... ” She drew in a ragged breath. “I want Dan… Mom… Dad… want to go home…”

Luke could feel her tears on his neck. “Shhh,” he soothed. “It’s okay, Abby. Trust me. It’ll be okay. You’ll go home. I promise.”

Eli’s hand was still resting on her head. He gently stroked her forehead with his thumb. His voice was a quiet murmur, in a mixture of English, Hebrew, and the ancient Aramaic of the Bible. “Go, and the Lord, Elohim, will be with you. At your right side is the angel Michael. At your left side is the angel Gabriel. Behind you are the angels Uriel and Raphael. And above you and before you is the Sh’khinat El, the loving presence of God. HaKadosh Baruch-hu, blessed be He, who shall guard you now and forever.”

Even with her mouth near his ear, her voice was a faint whisper. “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside the still waters...”

Her words became hesitant and faltering, slowly fading. “...I will... fear no evil... for You are with me...”

Silence. Stillness.

Luke and Eli joined in, in unison, finishing the Psalm for her. “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow you all the days of your life, and you shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”

Luke gently leaned her head back against the wall. Eli ran a hand over her face, closing her brown eyes.

Together, they pulled her body off of the metal shaft that had held her prisoner.

“You’ll be home soon, Abby,” Luke whispered. “Elohim shall be with you. The Sh’khinat El shall be with you forevermore. And again you shall arise.”

Footsteps approached, crunching on glass and concrete. It was Gabriel – tall, red-haired, his beard streaked with dust and grime. He looked down at Luke and Eli kneeling in the rubble.

“We’re finished here. Time to go,” he said quietly.

Luke looked around at the death and destruction surrounding them. “Maybe the world really is going to Hell.”

Their ageless companion frowned.

“So much pain, so much suffering… sometimes I just wonder if any of this is worth it,” Luke said.

Gabriel’s frown shifted to a smile. “You know that one day it will end. One day, all of this….” - he swept one hand in an arc - “will be redeemed and made new. It has been written, and so it shall be.”

His smile widened as he looked at Abby. “And you know how He is... even if there was only one, it would be worth it.”

He tenderly took her limp body into his arms. “Come.”

The sun emerged from behind a cloud, filtering through the landscape of darkness, dust, and rubble. A shaft of sunlight fell over the three men. Gabriel’s dust-covered white shirt seemed to glow, and light glinted off of Luke and Eli’s cross necklaces. Together, they climbed through the mess until they reached a door. Gabriel pushed it open, and they stepped outside into the light.

/ End /