The Children of Eternity Read Online Free PDF Page B

small, grassy meadow about three miles from the Andersons’ home. Tonight it was bustling. Groups of people were gating in all over, and everywhere people were gathered in small groups discussing the terrible curse that had befallen the community.
    Sarah and the boys quickly made their way toward the large, wooden front door. Beyond, in the well-lit church, still more people were gathered. Some sat in the wooden pews, while others stood around in groups. This church was large and could easily accommodate 500 people. They would have a standing-room-only crowd tonight.
    “We’ll try and sit near the front,” said Sarah, moving through the crowd of familiar parishioners. Everyone knew everyone else here. It was part of the very nature of Heaven. You instantly knew anyone and everyone you encountered, whether it be in church, in Zion, or in the forest beyond. It was a gift from God: there were no strangers in Heaven.
    Sarah had found space in the third pew back when Jerry pointed out a pretty, dark-haired woman talking with a group of people near the front of the church. “Remember this morning when I was telling you about my meeting with Chris Davis years ago? Well, that’s Jennifer Davis, Chris Davis’s mother. We’re likely to hear quite a bit from her before this night is over. When Serena was in Hell, Jennifer sent her things like clothes, food, and seeds. I suspect that she will be put on the demons’ black list real quick. They’re already on hers.”
    Over the next 20 minutes, the rest of the congregation filed into the church until it was completely filled. Bill, Cy, Jennifer, and several others sat up on the platform and would be addressing the congregation. Cy opened the meeting in prayer, then presented to the assembled multitude what they had discovered at the City of Zion. It was not an encouraging story.
    One of their group had even managed to brave the raging flow of people fleeing through the great archway and got beyond the wall and into the city. He spoke of collapsed buildings, rubble filling the streets, and angelic battles still raging above the southern regions of the city. However, the city itself was firmly under demon control. All of the saints who remained within the walls of the city did so at their own peril.
    There were reports that some of the citizens had managed to reach the Holy Place with its promise of sanctuary, but these were unverified reports. Even the member of their group who had managed to enter the city hadn’t stayed very long. It was just too chaotic and dangerous there.
    They also heard more about the battle at the place called Ceranda. Both the demonic and angelic forces had taken serious losses there. Yet the demonic forces had virtually unlimited reinforcements available. Had it not been for the humans who had evacuated the wounded angels to the safety of the second level of Heaven, hundreds of thousands of angels might have been captured. This was the place where a few brave humans had fired the first shots of the war, officially drawing humanity into the conflict. They had used a weapon that, interestingly enough, had first been fired in Hell to cover the escape of Serena Davis. They called it a particle rifle, and it had been developed by the great scientist Nikola Tesla. Along with Johannes Kepler and Niels Bohr, Nikola was leading the growing human resistance. It was curious that the human resistance was being led by scientists rather than by military or religious leaders. This brought a slight smile to Christopher’s lips. “Scientists rule,” he murmured.
    Christopher listened intently to the reports; he did the math. Apparently his conflict in the forest had not resulted in the first demonic casualties. Actually, he was a bit disappointed.
    When Jennifer Davis took the podium, the sparks really began to fly. She wasn’t mincing words. “This has been coming for a long time,” she began. Her voice was that of a fire-and-brimstone preacher, stirring the