Unforgettable Melody - S01 E70

Story 2 days ago

Unforgettable Melody - S01 E70

Read Story: SEASON 1 EPISODE 80

“So, you’re saying that I’m going to be on trial? And the outcome of that trial determines where I go?” Mike asked.

“Well yes, but trial isn’t the best way to describe it. They won’t be in the Judgment Chamber to determine your guilt, as that has already been determined, not just for you, but also for everyone in the customs house. After all, nobody except the Son of God Himself lived a life free of sin.”

“Ok, I guess that makes sense,” Mike said, feeling more at ease. “So how do I properly respond to my sins and shortcomings?”

Harry frowned, saying, “I’m sorry, but I can’t tell you that. It’s something you’ve gotta discover for yourself.”

“Guess I better think on that,” Mike said quietly, now beginning to worry.

“Anyhow, next in line is yellow, by far the most common status,” Harry continued. “They almost made you a yellow, but your efforts in teaching Melody about free will and God’s love prompted them to upgrade you to blue. Those who are yellows could end up anywhere. Typically, their hearing determines whether they go to Purgatory or Hell. They can also gain immediate entry into Heaven, though this somewhat less common. Purgatory is the most likely destination for a yellow, though anything is possible, depending on the severity of their sins and their response to them.

“Finally, the last status is red. You probably don’t even need me to tell ya what that means.”

Nodding Mike said, “One-way ticket downstairs?”

“Yep. Only the worst of the worst, which knowingly did enormous amounts of evil, are assigned this status. They don’t receive a hearing, but they must still stand before the Throne of God and face all of their sins brought to bear. Thankfully, reds are extremely rare, as it is a status reserved only for the most deserving individuals. If there is any doubt at all as to whether or not they warrant this status, they’re automatically upgraded to yellow.”

“Wow, that’s heavy stuff,” Mike said with a sigh.

“Sure is. Anyway, your hearing is coming up shortly. Before that, there’s one matter of business to attend to. Everyone is allowed to watch one other person’s hearing before their own, so that they can see what they are getting into beforehand. It can be anyone of your choosing, so how ‘bout we head back out to the lobby and find us a good candidate?”

“Sounds good,” Mike replied, standing and exiting the office with his granddaddy.

As they stood back in the lobby, the hustle and bustle of the many souls moving through never slowed. Mike watched intently, wanting to consider several potential candidates before making a decision. As he watched, however, a blood-curdling scream erupted from the other side of the room.

“NO!!! I do not accept this! I am a martyr! A saint!” a man fumed, speaking to a larger man dressed in a black suit. As the angry man attempted to attack, an invisible force knocked him off his feet to the ground, where he was swarmed and restrained by three more men in black suits.

“What was that?” Mike asked.

“Look at his tie,” Harry replied.

Mike could see that the man’s tie was red. “What did he do?” Mike asked.

Bowing his head, Harry explained, “In life, he fought for a terrorist group made up of religious extremists. Though he saw himself as servant of God, his crimes were heinous. He captured a bus full of twelve year-old girls to make them all slaves for his group and brainwashed many of them to try to get them to join up willingly. His final act was to go into an elementary school just as class was letting out and detonate a bomb strapped to his chest. He killed fifty kids in that act alone.”

Taking this new information in quietly, Mike finally replied, “I don’t need to see what happens to him. A part of me wants to see him punished. Still, I guess that wouldn’t make me much better than him, would it?”

“I agree,” Harry said with a smile.

Scanning the room, Mike’s eye caught sight of a man with a yellow tie that he recognized as a prominent politician from Georgia. He had served alongside Mike’s son for several years before being elected governor. Though he constantly talked about his faith in God and family values, Mike had long suspected that he was one of the most corrupt men in the state, as every law he signed seemed to do nothing but grow and consolidate his own power. Since Harry had said that Mike had nearly been a yellow, Mike thought this would be a good person to observe.

“What about him?” Mike asked, pointing to the man.

With a chuckle, Harry answered, “Henry Buchannan? Excellent choice.”

Harry led the way up to a booth on the third floor where they would view Henry’s hearing in the Judgment Chamber. There were identical booths lining the wall of the circular room, extending upward for about eight floors, though Mike noticed a section between ten o’clock and two o’clock completely devoid of booths. Most of the occupants in these booths were dressed in black suits, like Harry, though a few were wearing the same tan suits Mike had on. He surmised that the ones wearing black suits must be those who had already made it into Heaven.

The ground level of the large chamber was a circular floor containing several panels on the wall that appeared to be able to open. In the smaller, inner circle stood two podiums, each surrounded by circular wooden railings. Soon the light began to darken, and a ring of large men in black suits and sunglasses entered from the many panels around the room, surrounding the edge of the ground floor and standing in the shadows just beyond the illuminated center of the chamber.

“Who are they?” Mike asked quietly.

“Security,” Harry replied. “An elite group of God’s angels. They are not to be messed with.”

As he finished speaking, the two podiums began to shine with an ethereal light, growing brighter by the second. With a brilliant flash, the entire audience was blinded. Upon opening his eyes, Mike could see Henry standing in the podium to his right, with another man in the podium to the left. He was tall, though not as muscular and imposing as the other men on the floor. His dark black hair and goatee matched his suit for a very striking appearance.

“That’s Thomas, the Chief Council,” Harry said.

“Thomas? Doubting Thomas?”

Chuckling, he replied, “Yep, though truthfully, he gets a bit of a bad rap. Very few of the Apostles have grown to be as thoughtful and insightful as he has over the centuries. Like I said, nobody’s perfect, but he’s responded to his trademark shortcoming brilliantly.”