by Gord Rollo
Back with Tommy and the others, Tyrone explained that Staff Sargent Brody had also instructed them to head for Glacier Lake, the same information the little man back at the crossroads had given them earlier. Heaven apparently lay in that direction, so they may as well get walking.
“But there’s nothing out there,” Henrik said, stating the obvious. “It’s just a big lake. Heaven can’t be underwater…can it?”
They stood looking at one another in silence. None of them had an answer.
23
“It’s frozen,” Tommy said. “Looks fairly thick, too. Should hold us easy enough.”
They were standing on the shore of the great lake, Huong and Gia huddled within their blankets but the others shivering in the chilly air, wondering what their next move should be. There was really only one choice to make, but none of them were overly enthused to get on with it. All they could think about was how cold that water had to be and what might happen if one of them were to fall through the ice into it.
“Sgt. Brody told me to keep walking out onto the ice. Said we’d figure out what to do from there. I don’t understand it either but there’s no sense standing here freezing our butts off. Let’s get moving.”
The wind had blown the snow off the surface, leaving behind a sheet of smooth, slippery ice that was transparent enough that they could see some of the rocks and sand beneath it near the shore. As they progressed farther out though, the bottom of the lake dropped away and they couldn’t see anything but bitter cold darkness. Every time the ice creaked and pressure cracked somewhere nearby, their hearts leapt into their throats, sure they were about to crash through the frozen layer of ice and plunge into the frigid water below. It made them hesitant to walk too fast, inching along at a snail’s pace as their already frayed nerves were put to yet another test.
“What was that?” Huong said, fear in her voice.
“What?” Tyrone asked, looking above and around them but seeing nothing.
“Below our feet. I saw something just swim beneath us. Something big.”
“You’re kidding, I hope,” Tommy said but the Vietnamese mother didn’t answer back, everyone staring through the ice and hoping there was nothing down there to see. Something flashed by again in the dark water, a large blur that started Tyrone’s heart racing.
“There it is again,” Henrik said.
“That was smaller than the one I saw,” Huong answered, protectively pulling Gia closer to her side while she continued to study the water beneath their feet. “There must be more than one down there.”
“More than one what?” Tyrone asked, but nobody knew.
Even though everyone else nervously had their eyes on their feet, a bright light from above caught the Marine’s attention and he looked up to see what it was. “Oh my…look at that!”
When everyone else looked up, they collectively gasped, finally seeing what Tyrone was looking at in wide eyed wonder: Rainbows. Not one, not two, but five magnificent multi-colored rainbows arching out of a huge white cloud bank and reaching all the way down to the frozen surface of Glazier Lake. It was an incredibly beautiful, steal-your-breath-away kind of sight; the bright red, orange, yellow, green, blue, and purple stripes shimmering like priceless jewels where they hit the ice. Five separate treasure boxes less than a hundred feet away from where they stood but Tyrone was smart enough to know the real prize would be waiting at the other end of the rainbows.
“That’s it, guys! This has to be what we’re looking for.”
“You sure?” Tommy asked.
“There’s five rainbows and five of us. No way that’s a coincidence. Come on!”
There was no logical reason Tyrone should be so positive but he was convinced he was right and so were his friends. They followed along behind the Marine still weary of the large shadowy shapes moving beneath their feet but their spirits raised they were finally nearing the end of their long perilous journey.
“I still don’t see Heaven anywhere,” Henrik said. “You find gold – not paradise – at the end of the Rainbow; don’t you?”
“You serious? Take a look around, man. What else could it be? Come on…we’re close, guys. Really close!”
Their excitement build as they crept closer and closer to the five multi-colored targets magically painted in the sky and reflecting on the ice in front of them. The closer they walked, the more the temperature increased, the rainbows noticeably warming the air around them, wrapping the five adventurers in a welcome heat that chased away the bitter chill that has settled into their bones since leaving the Lost Patrol’s basecamp. Once they’d walked as close to beneath the rainbows as possible, they stopped, not sure what to do next.
“What now, bro?” Tommy asked.
“No idea. Maybe spread out a little. Everyone grab their own rainbow.”
Once they’d done just that, each person standing about twenty feet apart in line with the bright lights descending from the overhead clouds, they looked back at Tyrone and shrugged their shoulders.
“Nothing’s happening,” Henrik said, frustrated.
Tyrone was about to agree but then he looked down at his circle of light on the frozen lake and saw a large puddle of water there. The warmth of the light was melting the ice beneath their feet. Oh shit! he thought, his eyes returning to the ground to look through the layers of water and ice. Directly beneath his feet a huge face looked up at him from down in the dark water. Its image was blurry and obscured by bubbles of air but Tyrone could clearly see an open mouth and two large oval eyes.
“Get back!” he shouted to his friends. “Get out of the lights. The rainbows are melting the ice and--”
I large fist broke up through the surface near Huong’s feet. She screamed and jumped away but fell to her knees on the slippery ice. Another arm shot up through the frozen lake beneath Henrik, but he managed to sidestep its waving fingers and move out of the light. There were creatures under all of them, the once smooth surface of Glazier Lake suddenly cracking and heaving everywhere as the underwater visitors burst up and out of their icy depths to stand side by side in the warm glow of the rainbow’s lights.
“Sweet mother of God!” Tyrone said when he finally saw what was standing before them. He should have been screaming or running away or at least preparing to fight for his friend’s lives, but one look at the smiling faces on the new arrivals and all the fear and doubt drained away from his body. The Marine actually started to smile.
“Wait!” Tyrone shouted to his friends, hoping they had noticed what he had. “Don’t be afraid. I don’t think these guys are here to hurt us.”
Before them stood five massive angels; their muscular bodies and wings made entirely of translucent ice. One moment they would appear nearly invisible, but then they’d move and the rainbow’s light illuminated their entire core, brilliant reds and blues and greens shimmering throughout their bodies and highlighting their peaceful friendly faces. In the center of their chests, a royal blue heart appeared for a moment then changed to orange, then green, then back to invisible; the colors changing with every new beat.
Taking a leap of faith, the Marine moved closer to the angel closest to him. “Can you speak?” he asked.
“Yes, child,” the ice angel said in a soft voice, its frozen lips miraculously capable of fluid movement. “We speak a thousand languages and a thousand more that time has forgotten.”
“Who are you, then? Angels from Heaven?”
The iceman laughed. “No, but we were made in their image, just as you were made in the Creator’s. We are the Ice Angels; the Guardians of the Gate. Anyone who wishes to pass through the gates of Heaven must first pass through us. Are you worthy of seeing paradise?”
“Tyrone honestly didn’t know what to say. “Ahh…I hope so. My brother and friends certainly are. I’m not so sure about me.”
That comment made the ice angel laugh again. “Well my child, we shall soon see about that won’t we? Come…take my hand before the archangel changes his mind an
d turns off the rainbows. Without them, Heaven is out of your – and my – reach.”
Tyrone saw no reason not to do what he’d been asked.
“Tell Gia to not be afraid, Huong. Everyone take your Ice Angel’s hand and have some faith.” Once Tyrone saw that everyone was nodding their heads and understood what to do, the Marine stepped forward and placed his hand in the iceman’s huge grasp. The angel smiled and wrapped his arms around Tyrone’s waist.
“Hold on tight, child. You might want to close your eyes.”
Before Tyrone could ask why, the ice angel stepped backward into the rainbow’s glow and instantly flew high into the sky, a single passenger express elevator following the colorful arc of the light beams from above. Glazier Lake disappeared below at an incredible rate, the Marine screaming with both fear and joy at the exhilarating speed that they were travelling at. Tyrone noticed the other ice angels launching into the air as well, carrying his friends skyward too.
24
Riding the rainbow into the clouds took less than ten seconds and before Tyrone had a chance to look around he found himself being released by the ice angel and standing on a road made of golden bricks. The road headed off toward a huge gated wall about three hundred feet away from where he stood, but nothing beyond the wall was visible for this viewpoint. The Marine’s first thought was of Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz, of the yellow brick road leading to the doors of the emerald city, but then Henrik’s last statement came into his mind. Turning his head, he watched the other four members of his group joining him and he walked over to greet them as they arrived.
“Here’s your gold at the end of the rainbow, my friend,” he said, smiling as Henrik looked around in wide-eyed wonder. “Everyone else okay?”
“Gia and I are fine,” Huong said, and Tommy gave him the thumb up sign.
“Good.” Tyrone turned to his ice angel and asked, “We head for the gate?”
“Yes, child…and good luck to all of you. We must return to the lake now. This is as far as we’re permitted to take you.” The five ice angels started to walk away.
“Wait!” The Marine said. “Shouldn’t you stick around a little while? I mean…what if some of us get turned away and we need a ride back down?”
“There is no going back I’m afraid. The Archangel Michael will either welcome you into paradise or condemn you straight to Hell. Your time between fates is over. Again, I wish you all success. Good bye.”
His message and their tasks over, the ice angels walked to the edge of the clouds and once again entered the rainbows bright lights. Instead of flying away, the massive creatures began to rapidly melt, their icy bodies falling to the surface of Glazier Lake in the form of rain where they must eventually rejoin those of their own kind and await another call to service.
The ice angels gone, the multi-colored lights suddenly shut down, the five rainbows blinking out and leaving Tyrone and his charges all alone on the golden road. Together, they turned to face the massive wall of Heaven, their eyes on the golden gate set into the stone and each man, woman, and child wondering whether they’d be allowed passage to an eternity of peace and joy. The alternative didn’t bear thinking about. Not yet anyway.
“Come on,” Tyrone said, “Let’s get this over with. You guys got nothing to worry about.”
“Right!” Tommy said. “I’ve got a judgment to Hell, remember?”
“Maybe. Maybe not. Only one way to find out, right?”
Tommy sighed, and eventually nodded. “Let’s go.”
Tyrone took a step forward but Huong grabbed him by the arm, pulling him to the side. “I just wanted to thank you. You’ve brought us out of that horrible fortress and kept your promise. I owe you my gratitude for that.”
“No you don’t, Huong. Don’t say that. You and Gia don’t ever owe me squat. Neither of you would be in this mess if it wasn’t for my stupidity. It’s me that forever owes you guys.”
“Forever’s a long time, Tyrone. You’ve shown me you’re a good man…an honorable man, and although I’ve never been a violent person I understand you were only doing what you thought you had to. No matter what happens here at the gate I’ve forgiven you for what happened. You need to find a way to forgive yourself.”
“That means a lot to me. Thank you. I’m working on it. Now, let’s get you and Gia inside. Your entire family’s probably waiting on the other side of that wall for you. No sense keeping them all waiting.”
Tyrone held out his hand and Huong happily took hold of it. She said something to her son that the Marine couldn’t quite understand but seconds later Gia ran over and took hold of Tyrone’s other hand. The boy looked up at him and said, “Cam on bạn,” which Tyrone knew meant, thank you. “Bạn dang chao don,” Tyrone said you’re welcome back, a lump of gratitude forming in his throat, nearly bringing tears to the soldier’s eyes. Tyrone wasn’t proficient enough in the Vietnamese language to communicate further with the boy but the huge smile on his tiny scarred face said everything the Marine needed to hear. A huge block of ice melted around his heart, a burden he’d been carrying for months now suddenly removed and making him feel twenty pounds lighter. Tyrone grasped both their hands tightly and started to walk, Tommy and Henrik falling into stride right behind them.
As they approached the massive wall, a twelve foot tall impossibly beautiful man stepped outside the golden doorway, his pure white wings folded neatly on his back giving away the clue to who this might be. The angel had long blond hair and was dressed in white armor, a warrior carrying a huge steel sword on his hip but showing no outward signs of aggression. It was the opposite in fact; a sense of peace and love emanated from him and surrounded the nervous people gathered at his feet. In his hands he carried a large golden book, presumably the Book of Life in which all souls on Earth are eventually judged.
“Are you the Archangel, Michael?” Tyrone asked, remembering what the ice angel had told him earlier; more than a little awed to be standing in this magnificent man’s presence.
“I am Michael, yes; commander of God’s Holy army.” the winged man said. “And you? Who are you standing before me claiming to be worthy of entering this most sacred of places?”
“You go first. Huong,” Tyrone nudged the woman forward. “Gia and you have nothing to fear here.”
The Vietnamese woman took her boy by the hand and took two steps forward. In a formal voice she said, “I am Phan Thi Huong and my son’s name is Phan Van Gia. We are of the Buddhist faith and we seek entry into Valhalla.”
The Archangel never even opened his book, smiling down at the mother and child. “You and your son have lived an honest, faithful life and I welcome you to paradise. An eternity of peace shall be yours.”
Tyrone cheered and Huong started to cry tears of happiness. She smiled back at the man who had delivered on his promise to bring her here and then took Gia by the hand and disappeared through the gateway behind the archangel.
Two down, three to go, Tyrone thought; Tommy picking up on his words and smiling nervously beside him.
“You go next, Henrik. No sweat, man!”
The Swede gave them both a ‘wish-me-luck’ look but stepped forward without saying a word. He stopped in the place Huong and Gia had just stood, looking up into the warrior’s unflinching gaze. “I am Henrik Nils Lasson. My parents vere devout Christians but I vas often too sick to attend church; especially once the cancer took hold of me. I have always accepted Jesus and my personal savior though, and it vould mean everything to me to see my grandmother again in Heaven. Please let me in.”
Once again, Michael smiled down and ignored the heavy book in his arms. “You have lived a life of hardship, sickness, and pain but your heart has always remained pure. For that you shall be granted your eternal reward. Enter into Heaven, boy, your days of suffering are over.”
Tyrone exhaled another held breath, seriously happy for his Swedish friend. Henrik turned back to shake both the Marines outstretched hands.
“Thanks for not lea
ving me back in that cell, Tyrone. It was an honor to meet you and your brother. I’ll see you both inside in a minute.”
Tyrone simply nodded; not trusting himself to speak as together Tommy and he watched Henrik disappear inside the golden gate. When he was gone, the twin brothers looked into each other’s eyes, trying to decide who should go next. There was only one clear cut option though, especially after everything they’d been through in their lives.
“Let’s do it together,” Tommy said; his arm shaking as he reached out to take Tyrone’s hand. It was hard to tell if he was excited or deathly afraid. If he was feeling anything like Tyrone was, it was probably both.
Together they stepped forward to stand before the massive archangel. Michael stared down at them with no expression whatsoever on his handsome face, waiting for the brothers to find the courage to speak. Tommy decided to take the lead.
“I’m Thomas Jefferson Banks and my brother here is Tyrone Marcus Banks. We’re from Cleveland, Ohio and although our family was never all that religious, we both grew up in and around the Baptist Church and have always treated people with respect and compassion, the way we think God would have wanted.”
“You speak easily of God, but does the Almighty have a home within your heart?” Michael said, finally turning to the book in his arms, opening it up and thumbing through the pages. “It shows here you have a judgment of Hell beside your name, but it’s not signed by anyone yet. That means it can still be altered. Any reason why I should consider doing that?”
Tommy knew he stood on the razor’s edge of eternal damnation and needed to come up with something but his mind had suddenly gone blank, not sure what he could possibly say. Tyrone saw the terror in his brother’s eyes and took over for him, hoping he could find the right words to appease the archangel. “Tommy and I have done some bad things in life, sure, but none of them were things we were proud of. War can be a terrible thing but we were only doing what we thought at the time was best. We know now that we were wrong. Communism, Democracy… right-wing, left-wing…none of it matters. Politics is no different that religion; it doesn’t matter what you believe in, as long as you believe with all your heart. I know there is good in the world and I know there’s good inside of Tommy and me now. Our time here in the afterworld proved that. Please, search our hearts and you’ll see we’re worthy of entering Heaven. If not me at least let Tommy inside. He’s always been the better man.”
