There and back again (with apologies to Tolkien)

Who: Zack
Where: The pearly gates or a hallucination
When: Shortly after the Eniram shot him
Zack sat up, surprised at the billowy fog that swirled at knee
level. He felt his chest, but the spear was gone. So was Cubie's
controller.
A man in a white suit stood next to him. "Welcome back, sir."
Zack stared at the man. "'Back'? Back where?"
"Why, Heaven, of course. You seem to be a frequent flyer." The
man bent at the waist and offered an arm. "If I may, sir?"
Zack took the man's arm, and pulled himself to his feet. He
felt surprisingly well, considering a few minutes ago he was lying on
his back on the flooded Promenade with a spear through his
chest. "So . . . now what?"
The man smiled. "We'll go see the Boss. We don't often get
cases like you."
"Thank God," Zack muttered.
The man smiled politely. "That's what we do, sir."
They went through the Pearly Gates, then caught a passing cloud
that whisked them up to the top of the mountain that dominated the
surrounding countryside. A massive palace made of alabaster stood at
the peak, and brilliant light issued from every door and window.
The cloud settled at the entrance, and they stepped off.
Another man met them, this one with a clipboard. His smile was
conspicuously absent. "So, Mr. Richards. Back so soon?"
Zack blinked. "I'm sorry?"
The man scrutinized his clipboard. "You were here recently with
one Stuart McKenzie. Apparently you were both crushed when his
second-story office decided it wanted to be where you were."
Zack smiled. "Oh, THAT!"
Clipboard Man sighed. "You aren't supposed to be here yet.
We've got a very rigid schedule here, and you seem determined to
sabotage it. Your residence will not be completed for quite some
time. Heaven does not currently have a homeless problem, and we're
not about to start with you." He turned to the first man. "You'll
have to take him back. Again."
The first man smiled, a little tightly. "There is the matter of
the spear through his chest."
Clipboard Man nodded. "Yes, yes. We'll send a bio-maintenance
team with you again. Patch him up and reinstall him." Clipboard man
turned to enter the palace, then stopped and looked over his shoulder
at Zack. "Next time I see you, I plan to put your soul in a redwood
tree until we're ready for you. Understood?"
Zack nodded. "Uh, yeah. Got it."
Clipboard Man departed. Smiling man waved to the waiting
cloud. Are you ready, sir?"
Zack shrugged. "I suppose so."
-----
<The Promenade>
Zack sat up, sputtering. Looking around wildly, he was relieved
to see that the Eniram had departed. He saw the spear sticking up
out of the water. Clutching his chest, he was relieved to find that
there was no gaping wound. He sighed. Then he pulled Cubie's
controller out of his pocket. It was still crushed and perforated.
Zack went white. "Oh, Cubie. What have I done to you?"
Zack staggered to his feet and sloshed toward the lift, hoping
the engineers would be able to get her back on-line.
~Zack~