“Hey, Eric, have you heard the news?”

  I cringed as I watched William walk toward me at the soda machine. My coworker was two inches shorter and a bit heavier than I was, and he always wore an irritating smirk on his face. However, he was the closest thing I had to a friend at the company. We were both hired at the same time last year and bonded during our training class. A self-professed news junkie, he always greeted me in the same way.

  He stopped a few feet away and waited for my response. I sighed and said, “No. What?”

  “Scientists have found dark energy!”

  I shook my head as I laughed. “Didn’t they find dark energy a long time ago?”

  “No. They hypothesized that it existed, but they never directly observed or measured it.”

  As I got my soda and sat down at a table to enjoy it, he followed me and started explaining how satellites in space were suddenly detecting a strange new energy source. However, knowing a bit about science myself, I remained skeptical.

  “How do they know it’s dark energy?”

  He shrugged. “Technically, they don’t, but it's coming from space, so what else could it be?”

  We engaged in a discussion about the implications of this discovery for humanity. My role was primarily to sit quietly, nodding along and sipping my soda as he passionately elaborated on the potential for unlimited energy and faster-than-light travel. Once he started speaking on a topic, it was nearly impossible to get him to stop.

  Finally, he paused to take a breath, and I quickly interjected, “Well, that’s all very interesting, bud, but I have to get back to work.”

  And that was true. My soda was finished, and my ten-minute break was almost up.

  “Yeah, yeah, me too,” William said. He paused after standing up and looked at me with a hopeful expression. “Talk more after work?”

  “Sure,” I lied.

  We both got up and went our separate ways. I felt guilty for planning to ditch him later. There was nothing wrong with him, except for his tendency to talk a lot. I knew he wanted to be my friend, and I was happy to call myself his friend as well. However, I could only tolerate him in small doses because, by nature, I was an introvert.

  My cubicle was located in the southwest corner of the building, and I shared it with a girl named Sarah. She was a petite and pretty thing with blonde hair and an impish face, but she had the worst luck when it came to boyfriends. Sarah consistently chose men who ended up in prison for various crimes. Her current boyfriend was awaiting trial for assaulting a police officer during a DUI stop. It was quite ironic because, despite her preference for bad boys, Sarah was genuinely a nice person.

  When I sat beside her, she was on the phone with a customer, but she spared a moment to smile at me. Sometimes, I felt like she might be flirting with me, but it could have just been my imagination. She was friendly with everyone she met. Regardless, she had never shown any overt romantic interest in me. Perhaps it was because I wasn’t enough of a rogue for her.

  I listened to her conversation as I logged into my phone. She was not only easy on the eyes, but also easy on the ears. Her soft voice, accented by a sweet southern twang, gave me pleasant chills.

  “I'm really, really sorry, ma'am!” she spoke into her headset mic. “I wish I could help you, but that's a question only your adjuster can answer. I’m not able to answer coverage questions. I'm just here to help you file your claim.”

  I heard muffled yelling coming from her headset’s earpads.

  “I don't know who your adjuster is yet, ma’am. You have to file a claim first, and then one will be assigned to you.”

  More yelling.

  “I'm sorry, ma’am, but you cannot speak to an adjuster to find out if you are covered before you file a claim.”

  I felt sorry for Sarah. She always seemed to get the worst callers, yet she remained calm and polite with them. I wished I could pull the headset off her head and yell at whoever was on the other end to buzz off. Unfortunately, I couldn’t listen to more of her conversation because as soon as I put my own headset on, I received a call.

  “Thank you for calling American Heritage Family Insurance,” I said, trying to put a “smile” into my voice like I had been trained. “My name is Eric. Do you wish to file a claim?”

  A deep, aged voice came through the line. “The Rupture is coming.”

  I paused. “Excuse me?”

  “The Rupture is coming. You have been selected.”

  The phone line went dead. In fact, everything—my computer, the lights, and anything else that relied on electricity—shut down as well. In the dim light of the office, there was a shocked silence for about five seconds, and then everyone began speaking at once.

  “What the hell happened?”

  “The power’s gone out!”

  “Why aren’t the emergency lights coming on?”

  Sarah stood there staring at her blank computer screen. Finally, her eyes met mine. “Well, at least I don’t have to talk to that miserable old hag anymore.”

  I laughed. Despite her sweet nature, she was not above insulting others, and I found this contradiction in her personality amusing.

  “Well, at least you were dealing with a typical rude customer. I just received the strangest call ever.”

  She cocked her head, which was her way of telling me to continue. I always found this gesture endearing.

  “My guy told me the rupture is coming, and I had been ‘selected.’”

  She gave me an intense look. “Really? Are you sure he didn’t mean the Rapture?”

  “No, I’m pretty sure he said the rupture. What is the Rapture?”

  I was familiar with the term and knew it had a Biblical origin, but I was a bit hazy on the details.

  “The Rapture is when Jesus returns to Earth and gathers all believers to take them to heaven. Those who are left behind will experience great suffering.”

  I laughed. “Well, I definitely have not been selected for the Rapture.”

  She gave me a serious look. “Why not? Do you not believe in Jesus?”

  The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

  I suddenly remembered that Sarah was a deeply religious person.

  “Oh, I believe in Jesus,” I said. And that was true. I believed that Jesus was a real, historical figure. I just wasn’t sure about the “Son of God” part. “I just don’t think I’m a good person.”

  She touched my arm. “I think you’re a good person. You care about others, even if you try hiding it from yourself.”

  I stood there frozen, not only because I didn’t know how to respond to her assertion, but also because her touch sent a jolt of electricity up my spine. This was the first time she had ever touched me, however briefly, and I found myself enjoying it.

  The awkward silence lasted for a few moments before we were interrupted by the woman in the cubicle next to us, shouting, “I can’t get my phone to work!”

  She was referring to the smartphone in her hand, not her work phone. Her outburst prompted many others, including me, to check our phones. Mine wouldn’t even power on.

  “What’s happening, Eric?” Sarah said. There was a note of panic in her voice. “My phone won’t work, either. What does this mean?”

  “I don’t know. The only thing that could cause this would be …” I trailed off.

  “Would be what?” she asked.

  I did not want to say it. The implication was terrible, and she was already frightened enough.

  Suddenly, a bright flash of light illuminated the office, followed by a deafening peal of thunder that shook the entire building. People gasped in surprise and alarm, quickly making their way toward the windows. I thought this was a bad idea, but since Sarah was one of those venturing over, I felt compelled to follow her.

  Looking out the window, I scanned the horizon for a mushroom cloud, and I was both surprised and relieved not to see one. Instead, dark, roiling clouds covered the sky. Flashes of lightning threaded through them.

  “Dark energy!” someone behind me exclaimed, causing me to jump and Sarah to squeak in fright. “What did I say?”

  I whirled around to face William. “Jesus, man! Don’t sneak up on people like that!”

  “Sorry,” William said, directing his words more toward Sarah than me. It was no secret that he, like every other single guy in the building, appreciated her beauty. “I’m very sorry.” He then turned his full attention to me. “But it’s like I was saying earlier: dark energy is assaulting the world, causing electronics to go haywire.”

  “You can’t know that.”

  "Actually, I can. I was monitoring real-time satellite data before my phone stopped working. The dark energy readings spiked just moments prior. Dark energy is bad news. Do you think this will send us back to the Stone Age?"

  I stared at him. People were panicking all around us, yet he stood there calmly with his irritating know-it-all smirk as if we were discussing just another mundane news story. I couldn’t understand him at all.

  “All right, everyone!” Rebecca, our supervisor, shouted above the noise. “We’re not sure what’s going on, but we need all of you to return to your workstations while we figure this out. Remember, you’re still on the clock!”

  Slowly, reluctantly, people began to head back to their cubicles. William nodded at me before turning around and walking away, his hands in his pockets, whistling in a self-satisfied manner. He was always happiest when he had been proven right about something. The possibility that the world was ending seemed to bother him not at all.

  Sarah had not moved, so I stayed by her side.

  “I’m frightened, Eric.”

  “So am I,” I admitted.

  “Can you take me home?”

  I glanced at our supervisor. Her back was turned to us as she shepherded along other employees.

  “Yes.”

  We returned to her cubicle just long enough to grab her purse, then I led her to the stairwell and down to the first floor. Instead of heading to the front entrance, we used the emergency exit. Since the power was out, there was no risk of setting off the alarm.

  Once we reached the parking lot, I turned to Sarah and asked, “Where is your car?”

  “My boyfriend crashed it.”

  “Oh, right, you mentioned that before. That’s okay. We can take my car—if it works.”

  I wasn’t too confident about the situation. Other people had the same idea as us and were trying to leave, but they couldn't get their cars to start. Several of them even had their hoods up and were poking ineffectively at their engines. Nonetheless, I knew I had to give it my best shot. I told Sarah to wait outside while I climbed into my car and turned the key. Nothing happened. No lights came on the dashboard, and I didn’t even hear the sound of the starter attempting to turn the engine. The vehicle was completely dead. I got out and closed the door, not even bothering to lock it.

  “Looks like we’ll have to walk,” I said.

  “It’s okay. I only live a block away. How far for you?”

  I grimaced. “Five miles.”

  “You can stay the night with me if you like.”

  My pulse sped up. Was she asking what I thought she was asking?

  The thunder rumbled again, and the wind began to pick up. I wasn't sure it was safe to walk in this weather. However, if this really was the end of the world, I didn’t want to spend it at work.

  I noticed that Sarah was shivering, so I held her close as we began walking through the parking lot. For several moments, we didn't say anything. Finally, she asked, “Do you think what William said about dark energy is true?”

  “Perhaps,” I said.

  I wasn't as convinced as William. I thought an EMP had detonated over the city, but I wasn't going to mention that to Sarah. It might make her more afraid, not less.

  There was chaos on the streets. No vehicles were moving. A few had crashed, evidently after drivers lost control when their vehicles lost power. People stood outside their cars or on the sidewalks, gazing up at the sky or struggling to get their phones to work. The more astute individuals were running to find shelter. I would have joined them, but I had promised to get Sarah home.

  I paused. In the center of a traffic island stood an old homeless man with a cardboard sign that read, "THE RUPTURE IS HERE."

  He was staring straight at me.

  I felt myself go cold.

  “Eric, what’s wrong?”

  “That man … that man.”

  “What man?”

  I glanced at her and pointed. “That man over there…”

  But when I looked again, the man was gone. I searched the area, but he had completely vanished.

  I shook my head. “Nothing. I must have imagined it.”

  Suddenly, the ground began to shake. Sarah and I clutched each other to steady ourselves.

  “Eric, what is happening?” she asked, her voice trembling.

  “I don’t know,” I replied.

  All around us, buildings were shaking, and glass was shattering. People screamed and grabbed onto anything for support. This was easily the strongest earthquake I had ever experienced, and it showed no signs of stopping. If anything, the shaking intensified as the moments passed. Then, cracks began to appear in the ground, causing buildings to collapse and swallowing any cars that happened to be nearby. But that wasn’t the worst of it.

  From the cracks emerged … creatures.

  They ranged in height from one to six meters, possessing humanoid bodies with dark reddish skin, long claws, sharp teeth, and horns or spikes protruding from their heads, shoulders, and backs. I was convinced I was staring at actual demons from Hell. I watched one of the larger demons seize someone and bite him in half.

  Sarah screamed.

  I positioned myself between Sarah and the nearest group of demons. I had no weapons or illusions about my chances of defeating them, but they would have to get through me before reaching Sarah.

  Then, I felt my feet leave the ground.

  “What?” I cried.

  I was rising through the air, weightless like a balloon. I tried flapping my arms and kicking my legs to return to the ground, but it had no effect. I was not alone. Others were rising into the air around me, though they were far fewer in number than those who remained on the ground. I looked down at one of the people below me.

  “Sarah!”

  She looked up at me in stunned amazement. I was filled with an overwhelming sense of fear—not for myself, but for her. How could I protect her if I was being lifted into the sky? From my elevated position, I noticed more cracks developing in the ground, and more demons materializing from the depths of the earth.

  Actually, it wasn't the cracks from which they were emerging. They were coming from a glowing red light that filled the crevices—portals of some kind.

  Looking up, I saw cracks in the sky filled with a glowing bluish-white light. The precious few of us who had been "selected" for the Rupture seemed to be heading straight for them. It made no sense to me that I would be saved from the demon apocalypse while a true believer like Sarah was not. My heart ached as I stared down at her, devastated to be leaving her behind. She remained frozen in place, gazing up at me. I could see a group of demons closing in on her.

  “Run!” I screamed at her. “Run!”

  My words jolted her from her paralysis. She turned, spotted the demons approaching, and took off in the opposite direction. I prayed to Jesus—or whatever god or gods were responsible for this calamity—that she would be safe.

  I rose higher into the air until I was surrounded by bluish-white light.