Glorious Appearing Read online

  The blazing radiance of it lit the room. Chaim finally pulled away and left without another word.

  Rayford stole a glance at Mac and nearly fell off the bed. Mac was black! And he appeared to be trying to say something. "Well, I'll be, " was all Mac could manage, then, apparently noticing Rayford's reaction, said, "It's me, Ray. Zeke's handiwork. "

  "Mac, something's happened to me. "

  "Me too, buddy. It's a-standin' there plain as day. "

  "No, something's happened. "

  "What're you goin' on about?"

  Rayford slipped quickly off the bed and stood next to Mac at the window. "I'm standing, " he said.

  Mac turned. "Don't get ahead of yourself there, Ray. Let's take this one step at a time. "

  "I'm fine, " Rayford said.

  "Are you sayin'—?"

  "That's what I'm saying, Mac. No pain. No wounds. Look at me. "

  Rayford tore off his bandages. Even the hole in his temple was gone, though where Leah had shaved around the stitching, he still had no hair. He bent and yanked at the ankle wrap. Not even a scar. He jumped up and down, then loosened the plastic shin splint and kicked it free.

  "You don't say."

  Rayford whooped and hollered. "I do say! Let's get out there, Mac! Get me into the air. "

  "Now I don't know about that, Ray."

  "Then sit here and watch, man, because I'm going!"

  Enoch was cozy under a light blanket in his chaise lounge in the backyard when the sign appeared. He burst into tears and lifted his arms. "Praise God, praise God, " he said, and began singing every worship song he knew. The cross that extended from sky to sky towered, as the hymn writer had put it, "o'er the wrecks of time." Something about the overwhelming majesty of it simply communicated victory.

  For how long had he prayed and carried a burden for the inner-city people to whom God had sent him to minister? And for how long had he preached and taught and warned of this very day, this very event? He'd had no idea what form it would take, but this was perfect. "In the cross of Christ I glory," he said, his voice thick.

  Enoch slid off the cheap, rickety lounge chair and onto his knees, bowing before God. Though he lowered his head and closed his eyes, still the image of the cross in the sky stayed with him, as if burned onto the insides of his eyelids.

  As soon as Chang saw the cross on every screen in the bank of monitors before him, he shouted for Naomi and she came running. Hand in hand they raced outside and up to their favorite spot. They didn't speak. There were no words for this. They stretched out on their backs and stared and stared.

  "Thank You! Thank You, God!" Abdullah exulted. At the first appearance of the sign he had pointed the jet directly at the cross and throttled to full power. Was it there, right in front of him, as 3-D objects had appeared to be in movie theaters when he was a child? It was as if he could reach out and touch it, but though his craft reached top speed in seconds, the cross never appeared to grow closer. Its horizontal arms, like those of Jesus Himself, seemed to welcome the entire world into its embrace.

  The only logical follow-up was the Lord Himself, and Abdullah couldn't wait.

  For two hours Sebastian had not known what the enemy was waiting for, and maybe the enemy didn't either. But the sign became an impromptu trigger, and suddenly the frisky horses of the Unity Army were on the move. Their riders, now clearly visible because of the pulsating cross in the sky, urged their mounts to full gallop.

  And here they came.

  "Big Dog One to all units," Sebastian intoned into his radio. "Hold your fire. Wait. On my command. "

  Protests from every side crowded his ears. "Hold, hold, hold," he said, though platoon leaders from all around the perimeter reported the enemy literally yards away.

  "Have you lost your mind?" Otto squealed from a quarter mile to Sebastian's left.

  "Have you lost your faith, Otto?"

  "Ree Woo to Big Dog: It's time, sir."

  "Hold."

  "Permission to speak my mind, sir," came an urgent transmission from Razor.

  "Denied. Follow orders. "

  The front line of the Unity Army closed the gap in seconds. Sebastian stood his ground, facing horsemen with rifles pointed at him and others with swords drawn. He knew he was as visible to them as they were to him, the Petra perimeter suddenly bright as day. Only the sky behind the rugged cross was black with cloud cover.

  The Unity Army opened fire and Sebastian winced, but he did not turn or seek shelter. A couple hundred of his own troops stood between the army and the hillside that led almost straight up to the rose-red city of Petra, and all were fired upon. Shooting from a galloping horse was no small chore, but surely some of the bullets should have found their marks.

  The pings of shrapnel ricocheting off rocks filled the air, and the looks on the faces of the horsemen were priceless. Swordsmen steered their horses behind the mounted riflemen and one, clearly troubled but determined, came straight for Sebastian. George raised a hand and wiggled his fingers as if in greeting—or farewell—and the blade-wielding soldier swung his rapier in a wide arc while brushing past. It was as if the blade went right through Sebastian at the waist.

  Sebastian was now adrift in the middle of the Unity Army, and horseman after horseman rode straight at him—some shooting, some hacking with their swords. None so much as jostled him. One stopped and spun his horse around to try again, only to be overrun by a wave of his own comrades who had nowhere to retreat to.

  George turned and watched the assault on the hillside leading to Petra. The army had apparently underestimated the riders' ability to stay aboard their mounts as the horses managed the steep terrain, and everything slowed to a halt. Those on the plain below kept coming, causing a traffic jam of biblical proportions. Soldiers shouted at one another. Commanders screamed orders that could not be followed.

  Meanwhile, Sebastian and his people blithely walked through the midst of the enemy, unscathed.

  Chang ignored his phone as long as he could. He had considered turning it off, deciding his work was finally over. But a sense of duty prevailed. He tore away from the magnetic sign in the sky, shot Naomi an apologetic smile, and answered.

  It was his assistant. "You'll want to see this," he said.

  "I'm already seeing what I want to see," Chang said.

  "But you're still interested in the Jewish question, right?"

  "The Jewish question?"

  "What Rosenzweig called the 'worldwide turning to Messiah'?"

  "Of course, but that's been going on since Chaim's broadcast."

  "And it picked up with the lightning storm. "

  "Exactly," Chang said. "So what's new?"

  "You must come and see. Massive doesn't begin to describe it. There must have been millions still undecided, but no more. They're all coming to the Lord, and it seems every one of them is letting us know. "

  Rayford had never thought about what one wears to meet Jesus. He dug through his closet, finding—also as prophesied—three-and-a-half-year-old but good-as-new khakis, socks, and boots. He was dressed in seconds.

  "You thinkin' what I'm thinkin', Ray?"

  "What?"

  "That we got no business skedaddlin' out of here if you're healthy enough to fight. There's a battle comin', and the both of us were supposed to be in it. "

  "Don't do this to me now, Mac."

  "I don't want to be here any more'n you do, Ray. But Sebastian and Razor and Otto and them are all tryin' to hold the perimeter. "

  "Oh, man! Well, Abdullah's gone." Rayford was transported back to his childhood when he would plead his case with his parents. "Why does he get to do it?"

  "Abdullah can answer to his own conscience."

  "And I've got to answer to yours?"

  "Just do the right thing, Ray."

  "You staying, either way?"

  "Got to. It's the way I'm made."

  "You would have to get parental on me all of a sudden. "

  "Do what you got to do, Ra
y. I'll understand. "

  "I'm not flying without you, Mac. You really think God healed me so I can help in a battle He's already promised to win?"

  Mac shook his head. "I didn't say it made sense. I just told you what I thought. "

  "I'm calling Sebastian. "

  "This is Big Dog One!" Sebastian shouted. "Talk to me!" When he heard Rayford's question he laughed loud and long. "You and Mac get yourselves in the air right now, and if you don't I'll come up and shoot you myself. "

  He told Rayford where he was and what was happening.

  "Then you'll believe it when I tell you that when the sign appeared, God healed me. "

  "I'd believe anything right now, buddy. If it didn't mean leaving my people, I'd go with you. So you remember every detail, hear?"

  Chang had been told enough, by Naomi—whose love for him made him wonder about her objectivity—and by the leadership, that he had served a crucial function not just for the Tribulation Force, but also for the entire remnant in Petra. He was gratified to hear it, and while he was relieved to be out from under the daily pressure of living as a mole in the Antichrist's own lair at New Babylon, he had found Petra an unusual challenge.

  Naomi had been the bright spot, of course. But his work, sometimes fourteen to sixteen hours a day, could be both a grind and invigorating. It motivated him because he was—he couldn't deny it—somewhat of a prodigy in technical things. Associates told him that was an understatement, and some even held that he might be the leading computer expert in the world, despite his youth.

  All well and good, but when he examined himself and tried to decide what was troubling him about his current work, it was the old real-estate agent's adage: location, location, location.

  Computers had come a long way in his lifetime alone, but they still largely had to be housed inside, out of the weather. It seemed to Chang that he was still a mole, living mostly underground—or at least indoors. His forays out were always on breaks or at the end of the day, or when he was stealing a moment or two with Naomi, as he had just done.

  Now here it was, just before the Glorious Appearing of Christ, and he was back inside, sitting before a bevy of screens, keeping tabs on the whole world. It was a privilege, sure. Who else was doing it or knew how? And he knew he brought a lot to the table, like the ability to hack into the enemy's transmissions, both computer and television. And while he would rather be with the rest of the remnant, marshaling outside and being directed to various high places, Chang knew this was where he would sit for the end of the world.

  He could cry and moan or he could do his job, and he would do the latter. There would be time to be a front-liner, able to take in every detail of the millennial kingdom. For now he would monitor and coordinate the activities of his compatriots. They had to be kept in touch with each other.

  Sebastian was in the midst of the Unity Army's attempted invasion, as were Razor and Otto and Ree.

  Abdullah was in a jet, who knew where?

  Chaim was working with the elders to coordinate the people.

  Last word Chang had heard was that Rayford had been healed and that he and Mac were looking for four-wheeled ATVs so they could rejoin the fray.

  Lionel was in Chang's same situation, tied to a desk,

  still managing the far-flung exploits of the International Co-op from Petra with the help of Ming Woo.

  And Leah and Hannah were running the infirmary, a polite term for a medical facility as large as most hospitals.

  More fell to Chang than he felt should be under his purview, but with the leadership otherwise engaged, he would have to make some executive decisions. Abdullah had radioed in, asking permission to rejoin the masses at Petra.

  "I understand the resistance to the Unity Army on the perimeter has already been overrun, " he said. "But they are still safe and protected, and we know extra help is not needed there. "

  Chang couldn't blame Abdullah for asking. It was the very thing he wanted to do and to be—a camper instead of a counselor, for lack of a better description. "Come on ahead, " Chang told him. He also explained why Abdullah was having trouble reaching Rayford and Mac, but a minute later that all changed too.

  "Chang, " Rayford said, "Sebastian doesn't need us and can't use us. I've instructed him to bring his troops in to join the remnant. Their work is done. "

  "But won't they have to come through the Unity Army to get here now?"

  "They're in the middle of 'em already, and the enemy has no power over them. Once Chaim and the elders get everyone in place, the population here can look down on the plains all around Petra. They'll have a perfect view of the sky and the earth. "

  "And you and Mac?"

  "Mac's going to take his chopper and I need an ATV. "

  "You sure you want to go back out on one of those?"

  "What are the odds, Chang? Gotta climb back on the horse, as they say. "

  Chang checked his records and told Rayford where Lionel Whalum kept the best units, "full of fuel, charged up, and ready to go. And where will you go, or do I want to know?"

  "I'm going to go where Mac tells me. He'll be hovering over the Unity Army, trying to spot the leader himself. I want to be close enough to see and hear Carpathia. He's got to be somewhere out there behind the horde that has swept past Sebastian's position and is on its way up to our western border. "

  Chang filled Rayford in on what everyone else was doing, including Abdullah. "And you know where I'll be. "

  "We couldn't survive without you, Chang. "

  "Yeah, yeah. "

  Enoch got on his phone, shaking his head. He couldn't blame his little flock for cutting and running. He'd been scared too, but there was nowhere to go and, really, nothing to fear. That was easy to say but quite another thing to act upon when the powers of heaven had been shaken. But it didn't seem right to be apart from his people, not now.

  How surreal it felt to be stretched out on a chaise lounge in a suburban backyard, trying to reach parishioners on the phone while a cross of lightning miles tall and wide vibrated in the sky. He finally reached Florence, a late middle-aged black woman who seemed to have the most influence with the congregation.

  "Florence, where is everybody?"

  "About half of us are right here, Pastor. A little embarrassed, but okay. "

  "And where's here?"

  "'Bout three blocks from you, I reckon. We came back to the mall, but your car was gone, so we figured you was at home. "

  "I'm home. Why don't you all come here and be with me when the Lord returns. "

  "You told us never to give away your hideout. How we all gonna fit in your cellar, anyway?"

  He told her where he was. "Of course we don't want to draw the attention of the neighbors or the GC, but don't you think they're preoccupied with the sky right now?"

  "Watch for us. We'll be comin'. Only a few of us have cars, and we'll leave those here. "

  Mac stood talking with Lionel Whalum while refueling the chopper. "Haven't been outside all day, " Lionel told him, hands on his hips, studying the cross in the sky. "Except to get Captain Steele his ATV, of course. "

  "Not even for the lightning storm? That was something. "

  "Heard it. Saw it on a monitor. Tell ya, Mac, you'd think Co-op stuff was over now, but we've never been busier. "

  Chaim missed Tsion in the worst way. The younger man commanded respect, maybe because he was a rabbi, maybe because he simply exuded a walk with God that was newer to Chaim. It wasn't that Chaim couldn't get his elders' attention. It was just that he had to raise a hand and ask for the floor. Tsion never had to do that. Merely leaning forward or taking a breath or opening his mouth seemed to draw attention to him and quiet everyone else.

  Eleazar Tiberius, not that much older than Tsion had been but a much bigger, rotund man, had become a wonderful ally. Twenty years younger than Chaim, his deep bass voice and the gray invading his sparse rim of black hair and beard lent him an air of authority. And he was appropriately deferential to Chaim
's leadership, frequently calling for order and requesting—demanding, really—that his colleagues listen to Rosenzweig.

  That was crucial now when the elders were about to split up and coordinate the various group leaders for all the Petra citizens in their respective areas. "We must have order, " Chaim said. "We must keep people moving and under control. Notice the chart here. Gentlemen, please. Notice the chart where the groups are to go. Please! Each of you is responsible for undershepherds who will have a total of a hundred thousand men, women, and children in their charge. "

  Chaim stopped and looked down. He feared the elders were not listening. He could understand that they wanted to get back outside so as not to miss the Glorious Appearing. But that was what this was all about. He didn't want anyone to miss it. He looked at Eleazar, who used his voice to fix the matter.

  "Gentlemen! If you do not at least glance at the chart, you will not know where to tell your group leaders to go! Group number one, as you can see, you are taking the southern route to the high places on the western border. Our engineers have determined there is enough room for everyone, if all cooperate. The first forty groups of a thousand each can move to within ten feet of the edge, but they must all be willing to sit once they get there. And it is of crucial importance that the sixty groups behind them not press forward or we could lose tens of thousands over the side. Understood?"

  Chaim was pleased to see Abdullah rush in. As Eleazar continued the instructions to the other elders, Chaim pulled the Jordanian aside and embraced him. "How is my prize student?"

  Abdullah told him where he had been and what he had seen. "As you know, Doctor, I am not a man of outward emotion, but I do not mind telling you, I was moved to tears by what the Lord showed me. It was such a privilege. "

  "I cannot imagine your wanting to leave the sky. "

  "I had an overwhelming desire to be with you and the

  people for what comes next. I have the strangest feeling that it could be any second, even before we get everyone assembled. "

  "We fear the same, " Chaim said. "The Unity Army is at our doorstep, and the only reason our people have the confidence to look down over the sides into their gun barrels is that we saw them swallowed up by the earth the first time they dared approach, and we danced in the fire they sent us the second time. "