The Omega Existence

Chapter 16

“You wished it?” Ben asked for what seemed like the hundredth time. He knew it would just annoy Andrew further, but he just couldn’t accept that they had suddenly been whisked away to the opposite side of the world, magically, all because Andrew wanted it to happen, really, really badly.

“Were you thinking of the beaches of Australia when those missiles hit?” Andrew drawled.

“No,” Ben replied, already knowing what was to follow as he looked over to check that Abigail was still with them. She had kept unusually quiet since they had somehow escaped the destruction of Rome.

“Well I was! And here we are. Now can we move on and figure out what the hell we’re supposed to do now?”

“Why on earth were you thinking of beaches anyway? Why weren’t you thinking about your life, or death, or I don’t know, something that makes sense!” Ben complained as they trudged their way down another street filled with abandoned cars. The occasional roar of a group of Harleys racing through the streets continued to haunt them like strange creaking in an empty house.

“I was thinking of my life. I was thinking about the time I spent here a few years ago at a conference. I was desperately wishing that we could all come here, that I could enjoy this place with both of you. To spend our days on the beach, relaxing underneath the warm sun, watching people dive into the cool water and relax.” Ben fell silent, ashamed of himself as he listened to the slightly bruised emotion in Andrew’s reply.

“I’m sorry Andrew, I … I just don’t understand what happened.” Ben looked down the street as they came to an intersection. To the right he could see street which lead to the coast, to the right more of the same empty street with trashed cars and loose pieces of clothing strewn along the ground. He continued straight, they were on a main road, littered with abandoned cars. Hopefully they would be able to find one that wasn’t trashed, one they could drive.

The sun pelted down at them with a relentless heat that the cool breeze could not ease. It felt as if they were in a giant oven as the hot bitumen underfoot radiated with the sun's heat. Sweat trickled down the back of Ben’s shirt, but that discomfort was nothing compared to the aching that in his feet as they trudged along.

The ground suddenly trembled beneath them, shuddering as if the world were being ripped apart.

“Funny, I thought they didn’t have earthquakes here.” Andrew said as his arms flayed in their air as he tried to keep his balance.

“They don’t,” Ben replied just as a deep voice crackled around them.

“I declare the Gates of Zion open, the blood of the Martyrs is accepted and shall all those left tremble with what is to come!” The voice echoed throughout the buildings, bouncing down streets and reverberating inside Ben’s mind. His heart ripped with a terror that he had thought already beyond him. Abigail had already dropped to her knees, in renewed praying of tongues.

“Is that what I think it is?” Andrew asked, his dark eyebrows drawing down in consternation.

“Things are about to get a lot worse.” Ben answered as he continued walking, now setting a frantic pace ignoring Abigail’s praying.

“But, everything in your book! What about the two preachers, the full scaled war, the redemption of Israel? Everyone’s supposed to be in heaven already. Why the hell are we still here Ben?” Ben froze, cringing at the accusations, the pure desperation that was draining from Andrew like a cup that had been full of bottled hope. A cup that had just been shattered and now doubts escaped like a wild flood of fear.

“I don’t know Andrew, perhaps that has already happened.”

“If it did, I would know about it! There’s nothing on the network about any of it!”