Unearthly Realms

by Ron L. Carter

It was a beautiful sunny day in California and Tyler could hardly wait to get home to be with his wife Maggie. She’d taken time off work from her busy schedule as a nurse at the hospital to make sure she would be ready in time. It was their first anniversary and he’d made plans to take her to her favorite restaurant for dinner. They’d been planning it for days and he’d gone to the local jewelry store and picked up a gorgeous gold tennis bracelet that he was going to give her during their romantic dinner.

  They married a few weeks after he turned twenty-five and she had just gotten her nursing degree. They were still in the honeymoon stage and were crazy in love with each other. Tyler was so much in love with Maggie that when he went to work his thoughts were always on her, no matter what he was doing. He couldn’t wait until he got off work just to get home and be with her. The excitement of seeing her would always remind him of how lucky he was to be with a partner he loved so deeply. He always felt lucky to have found that one person that loved him just as much as he loved her.

  On this day, he’d planned his schedule at the fire station so he would be off around 6:00 p.m. His much anticipated date with Maggie was going to be at 7:00 and he couldn’t wait. He thought he would have plenty of time after work to go home, shower and get ready. He knew how important this date was for both of them. Maggie had been telling her friends for a few weeks that Tyler was taking her for an extravagant dinner on their anniversary to her favorite place.

  The fire station had been slow, like most days, until around 5:00 p.m. That’s when they received a call that a house was on fire and they needed to respond immediately. Tyler quickly put on all his firefighting gear and headed for the truck. His other buddies, Jerry and Frank were already on their way and they met him just as he was getting in the truck. At that moment his dinner date with Maggie was starting to weigh heavy on his mind. He knew that a fire meant there could be people trapped in the burning building and needing help, but he also didn’t want to be late for their date. As he jumped in the truck he looked over at his best friend Jerry and said, “What a time for this.” Jerry knew this was a big date for Tyler as he raised his eyebrows and replied, “What are you going to do?” He knew Tyler wouldn’t let anything stop him from helping out in the fire. They never knew what to expect when they received these kinds of fire calls. It could be just a kitchen fire or the house may be totally engulfed in flames by the time they arrived. They had no idea what to expect or how long it was going to take, not until they got there. Tyler replied, “There’s nothing I can do.”

  When they arrived at the house they found out that the fire was a kitchen fire and had just begun to spread from the kitchen to the other parts of the house. Everyone inside had escaped without any serious injuries. They immediately hooked up the hose to the fire hydrant down the street and began to spray inside the house. It didn’t take long and the fire was fully contained and under control. Even a simple fire like this took time because they had to keep an eye on it for a while to make sure it didn’t reignite.

  By the time they were done with the fire and back at the station the time on Tyler’s wrist watch said 6:45. They still had to put the truck away and make sure everything was back in order before he could leave the station. He called Maggie and told her what had happened and that he would get there as soon as he could. He could tell that she was a little disappointed he was going to be late for one of the most important dates they had been on since they had gotten married. Even so, she told him not to worry about it; she would see him when he got there.

  He was rushing around and putting things away when Jerry came up to him and said, “Get out of here, man, go on your date, I’ll take care of everything here.” As much as he wanted to help Jerry, he thanked him, ran to his car and took off. As he headed toward his house his mind was on Maggie and how late he already was going to be. He was thinking he still had time to shower and figure out what he should wear. His mind was racing a million miles a minute as he came to an intersection where he was supposed to stop. He was in such a hurry that he didn’t even notice the stop sign. The traffic coming from the opposite direction had the right of way and didn’t have to stop. He’d made that drive hundreds of times back and forth to work, but on this day, his mind completely blanked out and he went through the intersection at full speed. An eighteen wheeler was coming in the opposite direction and it didn’t even have time to hit the brakes as it crashed into Tyler’s side of the car.

  The last thing Tyler remembered seeing and hearing was the impact of a vehicle that hit him full force on his driver’s side. He instantly lost consciousness. He didn’t know how long he was out until he woke up and was in terrible pain. He could hear the distant sound of sirens from the emergency truck that was heading in his direction. He believed it may be Jerry and some of his other buddies that had gotten the call and were on their way. The pain was so excruciating that he again lost consciousness before the emergency vehicle arrived.

  The next thing Tyler remembered was when he was fully awake and in the emergency room, but something was very odd; he had feelings of levitation. He looked around the room and he was floating vertically above what looked like doctors and nurses working on someone on an emergency room table. He wondered what he was doing just floating around like a speck of dust. He looked at his body to see if his hands and legs were intact and they were but all he had on was his pants and a pair of socks. He couldn’t figure out why he was half naked but feeling so happy and carefree. He had the feelings of total serenity, security, and warmth as he thought, “I’m alright, and I didn’t even get a scratch from the accident.” Then suddenly he realized that couldn’t have been possible since the last thing he remembered before he passed out was the horrific pain his body was in from the accident.

  He wanted to take a closer look at the body on the operating table and see what was going on. He couldn’t help it, but he felt absolute disassociation as he floated closer to the person on the table. When he looked at the person on the operating table he was shocked to see that it was his own lifeless mangled and twisted body the doctors and nurses were working on. He heard a voice that sounded like it had come from a deep cave. The muffled voice said, “We’ve lost him; we’re not getting a heartbeat.” There was blood oozing from a deep cut in his face and out of his ears and nose. His lifeless body lay motionless as everyone was franticly working to save him. There was a tube sticking down his throat and several machines and wires hooked up to his body. He could hear and see everything going on and what they were doing to him. He thought he must be delusional or having some kind of mind trauma as he tried to get their attention. Not realizing the full extent of his injuries he said, “Hey everyone! I’m here! I’m ok! What are you guys are doing?” He didn’t get a response from anyone so the next time he yelled out as loud as he could and there was still no response from anyone in the room. He tried several more times to get their attention until he finally realized they couldn’t hear him. As he looked down at his blood-spattered and beaten body, he knew that he no longer was part of what lay on that table. He kept hearing the nurse say we’re losing him; we’re losing him, as she put the heart paddles on his chest and shocked him several times.

  Tyler’s thoughts were on Maggie and he was worried she may be upset with him for missing their date. The very instant he thought about her he was in the emergency room waiting area where she was frantically waiting and crying. His teleportation was instantaneous and all it took from him was the thought of being with her and he was there. Maggie was sitting next to his father and mother and they were all upset and crying. He floated down close to Maggie and tried to comfort and console her. He tried with everything he had to make contact with her, but she couldn’t feel his touch or hear his voice. He tried to put his arms around her and hold her but there was still no response from her. He gently leaned over and kissed her on the cheek but nothing. He could see and feel her but she couldn’t see or respond
to him. He tried several times to tell her he was okay but she just sat their wiping away the tears with the already soaked tissue. He went over to his mom and said, “I know you can hear me Mom. Tell Maggie I’m okay.” No matter how hard he tried and how loud he shouted there was no response from any of them. His dad just sat there with tears running down his face with one arm around Tyler’s mom and the other one around Maggie as he stared at the wall.

  That was the moment Tyler had an emotional letdown as the floodgates opened up and tears filled his eyes. His entire life began to flash before his eyes. It was like a movie review of his entire life and he realized at that point he had passed from his body into some other realm. He was having a strong urge to return to his mangled body and go back to the life he had with Maggie and his family but he couldn’t quite get there. Every time he tried to go back and enter his body it was like something or someone was holding him back.

  He’d heard and read stories about people that that supposedly had died and went through what they called a “near death experience, the light.” It usually happened after they had either been terribly ill or critically injured and their hearts had temporarily stopped beating. It was after they were clinically dead. They all had similar things happen to them that he was now experiencing. They claimed they had died and could see their bodies lying on an operating room table and floating above the bed while the doctors and nurses worked on them. Some said they had the same sense of peace and well-being he was now experiencing and he realized he was there. Others claimed they had a “tunnel experience” of moving through a passageway toward a bright light where they had communication with the light and reunited with deceased loved ones. They said they talked to their loved ones only to be told to go back to their life once again. Their loved ones said their time on earth was not up yet. It wasn’t their time to pass on. This was what Tyler was hoping he was going through and that any moment he could return to his body. As he went back and forth from the emergency operating room to the emergency waiting room he thought, “Maybe that’s what I’m having right now, just a near death experience. I’ll be back in my body soon and everything will be back to normal.”

  He floated above his body once again and found that he had no pain. There was nothing but peace, calm and a loving feeling throughout his entire being. He had never experienced anything quite like this before and he was beginning to give in to this peaceful feeling of complete tranquility and serenity. He could hear celestial music and could clearly see vivid colored flowers and in the distance there was gorgeous greenery with bright green trees and bushes. His vision was hundreds of times better than it had ever been. He thought, “This is really the most wonderful feeling and experience I’ve ever had.” He was starting to feel like he didn’t really want to be part of the body that was in so much pain and agony that lay on that operating table. He liked the feeling of complete unconditional love and calm. He had never done drugs in his life and wondered if this was what it was like because he had nothing to compare it to.

  He was airborne back and forth trying to figure out what to do when he saw a bright small orb in the distance and it was getting larger as it got closer. The orb quickly grew in size and intensity until it was much larger than anything else around him. He couldn’t help but turn his full attention and focus completely on it as it approached. Nothing else existed to him at that moment in time. The light had a circular opening that was warm and bright. The closer it got to him; he realized it was two eternal beings that were approaching him from within. He sensed they were very happy to see him as they moved closer. The all-encompassing brilliant light that was almost impossible to look directly into encircled them and it sparkled like diamonds. He had never seen anything so bright, clear and overwhelming. As the figures came forward he could see that one of them was his Grandfather that had passed away several years earlier and the other one was his Uncle Frank that had passed away just a few years earlier. Frank was his dad’s older brother that had passed away from cancer. As they approached Tyler they reached out their hands to greet him and he could feel the absolute and unconditional love and compassion they were projecting. Tyler’s grandfather quietly said, “We are so excited to see you Tyler. It looks like your time on earth is done; you need to come with us.” Tyler’s first reaction was that he had missed his Grandpa so much and was so happy to see him that he wanted to go with him wherever his grandfather wanted to take him. For a moment he thought back to when his Grandpa first died. He was twelve years old and all he wanted and prayed for at that time was that his Grandpa would somehow return. Now here his Grandpa was standing right in front of him and wanting him to come with him. He was telling Tyler that he needed to go with them through this bright light. Tyler just wasn’t sure where it was that his Grandfather wanted him to go. He loved and trusted his Grandfather but didn’t want to leave Maggie or his family. He was now being torn between two worlds, wanting to remain on earth with his loved ones and at the same time feeling a strong pull to go with his Grandpa and uncle through the light

  At the last moment Tyler jerked back his hands and said, “No, Grandpa, I can’t go with you and Uncle Frank right now. I’ve got to get back to Maggie. I love her so much and she’ll be worried sick about me.” His Grandfather just looked at him lovingly and said, “You no longer have to be concerned with those matters Tyler, you’ll see her again someday. You’ve left that body and your spirit is now with us. You should go through the light. Everyone is waiting for you.” He yelled at his Grandpa, “I don’t want to be dead Grandpa, I want to be with Maggie and Mom and Dad. I can’t go with you right now. I’m going to stay here so just go ahead without me. His Grandfather replied, “But Tyler you’re no longer of that world. You’ve passed on and now your spirit will live on forever with us in eternity. If you don’t go with us now, you’ll be left in limbo until you accept the light and pass through to the other side. There’s nothing but love and peace that awaits you.” He said, “That’s ok Grandpa, you go ahead without me. I need to figure this one out for myself. I’ll catch up with you later. Maggie and I had an agreement that if either of us ever died we would find a way go back and contact each other and let the other one know we were okay.” His Grandfather knew there was no point in trying to talk him into it at that point. He figured that when Tyler was ready he would contact them and let them know he wanted to pass through the light. His Grandfather and Uncle Frank turned and started to walk back into the light. He looked back and told Tyler, “If that’s what you want then we’ll leave you, but you’ll be stuck in limbo until you reach out for us.” His Grandfather told him they would be there for him when he was ready. Within a few seconds they had disappeared into the light and Tyler was floating once again above his body. He saw the doctor look at his watch as he announced, “The time of death is 7:40 p.m.” Tyler then knew his body had died. He was now part of the spirit dimension.

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  Chapter 3 – Meeting Markus and Holly