�This is where you live?� Uriel asked, eyes a bit wide as he inspected the inside of Atanya�s tiny home.
����������� �Yes,� Atanya answered with a faint
smile.� �It�s not much, but��
����������� �What a dump,� Azrael observed,
running his fingers over the back of a chair and then peering at them, as
though looking for dust.� A look of
slight disgust crossed his features, and he wiped his hand on Michael�s shirt.
����������� �Ever the polite one, aren�t you
Azrael?� Michael said with a sigh as he stepped over to Atanya.� �Don�t worry about Azrael.� He�s the sort that complains about the
homeless but wouldn�t piss on their gums if they were on fire.�
����������� The angel of death only stared at
his brother for a long moment, one eyebrow ticked, before speaking.� �You sure picked up some colorful phrases.�
����������� Michael grinned.� �Yeah!�
Did you hear the one about this guy from Nantucket�"
����������� �If we could please stay focused,�
Uriel interrupted, a pained look on his face.
����������� �Oh, right.� I�ll tell you later,� Michael assured, and
then he shifted his gaze to Atanya, who was quietly giggling at the heavenly
group.� �So tell us what happened.�
����������� ��Okay,� she began softly.� �Please, have a seat.�
����������� Michael and Uriel sat on the small
couch, but Azrael remained standing.�
�I�d rather not,� he mumbled, looking at the sofa with disapproval.
����������� ��I found him in the street last
night.� He was just sitting there on the
curb, totally naked, looking like a little lost puppy or something.�
����������� �Sounds like Gabriel,� Azrael
murmured, but Uriel hushed him.
����������� ��So I asked him if he was alright,
an he said he was fine, but�I just felt like I couldn�t leave him there, so I
brought him home with me.� He told me
his name, but that was all�and, um�� She blushed.� ��Well I brought him some clothes, but when I tried to give them
to him he�he kissed me�� Her blush deepened.�
��Then�well��
����������� ��We know enough of that part,�
Uriel spoke up.
����������� �What about this morning?� Michael
pressed gently.
����������� �Well when I woke up, he told me
about you three, and I had to go to work, so I just left him�I don�t know where
he went after that.� He could be
anywhere.�
����������� �He�ll probably come back,� Azrael
offered, �but he can�t know we�re here.�
So we�ll leave.� Uriel, you�ll
keep your orb tuned in or whatever to the house, and the second he comes back,
so will we.�
����������� �Right,� the other two said in near
unison.
����������� �Atanya, don�t even think about us
when he�s here.� Just act like you don�t
know anything.�
����������� �Alright.�
With that, the three angels left the house and took
to the rooftops, traveling for a few blocks before settling down to wait.
Gabriel watched with sad, gentle eyes as the sun
began to dip below the horizon of the skyscrapers.� �Well, I asked for a day�and I got it, one way or another.� Now to see if they�ve found the girl
yet.�� He started walking down the
street with his hands casually shoved into his pockets, making eyes contact
with everyone he passed, smiling at the shiver he felt it cause in the women
and even a few of the men.� By the time
he reached Atanya�s home, the sun had all but disappeared.� He stepped inside to find her reading in a
chair in front of the fireplace, and he smiled when she looked up.
�You�re back,� she said happily, putting down her
book before going to meet him.� She
wrapped her arms around him the best she could, and leaned her head against his
chest.� �You came back.�
�Of course,� he answered as he slid his arms around
her waist.� �You expected me to just
leave?�
�Sort of�it�s certainly not every day a wonderful
man appears in your life�and even if it does happen, you don�t expect him to
appear again once he leaves.�
�Well, now you know I�m better than that.�
�Gabriel!� a new voice called from the doorway, and
the black-haired man whirled.
�Michael�so you finally came.� Took you long enough.�
�Would have been quicker if you hadn�t kept
running,� Azrael said with a near playful smirk, stepping up beside Michael,
Uriel on the general�s other side.
�I didn�t run anywhere.�� Gabriel gently urged Atanya behind him.
�Are you going to run now?� Michael asked
softly.� �Are you going to make up bring
you, or will you come?�
�I rather like it down here�I may decide to stay for
awhile.�
�You know you can�t do that!�
�Why not?�
I�ve done no harm here!�
�It�s not permitted.�
�I will not be bound by the rules made up with only
Metatron in mind!� I will not bow to the
idiocy of it all, and I will not live my life watching the world that I helped
to create pass me by!� It�s our world,
we should be able to do with it as we please!�
�Even if that is true, it doesn�t matter.� You still have to come home.�
�I won�t!�
It�s all hypocrisy, don�t you see?�
I wont� go back, not with the way things have become!�
�He�s crazy,� Azrael growled, �let�s just take
him!�� He raised his hand, and with a
movement like he was drawing something from the air itself, a sword appeared in
his hand.� The blade was somewhere
between transparent and opaque, with pale blue green, and white flames licking
at it from the hilt to the tip.� It had
obviously been masterfully forged, and its skillful master was equally as
obvious.
�Atanya, get back!�
Get out of here!�� Gabriel cried,
shoving the woman out of the way as Azrael rushed at him.� He tried to pull his own sword, but nothing
came.� A slight hint of fear crossed his
features as he looked to Michael, and he nearly forgot to dodge Azrael�s blow.
�I�m sorry, brother,� Michael offered quietly, �but
I can�t let you do this.�
Azrael tried again, swinging the flaming sword in a
great arc over his head towards Gabriel.�
He cursed in his own tongue when the other angel again dodged, his voice
taking on a terrible inhuman quality for a moment.� �Is this all you can do, run?!�
But Gabriel winced, and held his arm where the
flames had kissed his skin.� �No�it is
not all I can do.�� He leaped over
Azrael and spun so that he faced his back, planting a hard punch at the base of
the other angel�s spine.
�Azrael!� Uriel called out with worry in his voice
as the angel of death cried out.� The
redhead�s eyes narrowed, and he too drew his sword.� �Gabriel�I love you my brother, but you have lost your
mind�!�� He started on Gabriel, his
blade cutting hard into his leg before he had time to turn around.
Now it was Gabriel�s turn to shout as he dropped to
his knees, and in half a moment Azrael was on him again.
It was all happening too quickly for Atanya to
watch, but she saw Gabriel go down, and she called out his name, receiving no
answer save his cries of pain as he was repeatedly cut and burnt.� Then she heard a distinct word amongst the
chaos in Gabriel�s raspy voice, but it�s meaning was lost to her.
�Guziel!�
She had to shield her eyes from the light the word
brought, but she soon saw that another angel had appeared, clad in the same
white robes in which she had seen Azrael.�
His dark, slightly curly hair was pulled back at the nape of his neck
into a ponytail that ended between his shoulder blades.� He, too, held a sword, also attended by
fire.
Azrael and Uriel were hit from the side, she thought,
and it seemed to her that not even a second had passed before they were
unconscious and neatly piled against the wall.�
Then the figure tuned to her, and she saw the malicious intent in his
dark eyes.� The girl took a step back,
eyes wide as he began to approach her.
Michael silently shook his head, a look of mournful
regret forming on his features.� He knew
this angel all too well�Guziel had been known in the old world, to those select
few who knew where to look.� He was of
the Djinn, those angels who had been called upon centuries ago to grant any
wish the caller could think of, provided they somehow managed to discover his
secretive name.� It was forbidden for
one man to tell another the name Guziel; only those who studied the ancient
tomes had a chance of discovering his existence.� In the old days, he was called upon for many wishes, from a good
harvest to the love of a beautiful woman.�
Then, slowly, somehow, his name became associated with that which is to
be used against one�s enemies.� He was
only called upon in the direst of situations, and only then to kill.� He became so embittered by this that he soon
would grant no wish but death, to the one it was wished of and all of those
around him, even that of the one who called him, if they were not strong enough
to realise what they were doing.� Now he
was little more than an animal, killing all those who got in his way in the
most gruesome manner one cared to imagine.
Michael could only surmise that it was Guziel�s way of dealing with being reduced to such a thing in man�s mind.
Gabriel tried to sit up, reaching out a hand in an
attempt to stop the one called Guziel.�
�Guziel�no!� Atanya, run!�
Atanya only stared for a moment, and then ran full
speed out the back door, her bare feet slapping the rough concrete of the
sidewalk as she arrived on the street.�
She could hear him right behind her, his own bare feet taking a steady,
walking pace in her wake.
�Michael!��
Gabriel cried in distress as he got to his feet, turning to the only
other angel Guziel hadn�t attacked.�
�Can�t you do something?!� He�ll
kill her!�
��You summoned him, brother,� Michael answered
calmly.� �You knew full well what he
would do, and you summoned him anyway.�
So she dies by your hand.�
�No!��
Gabriel ran as best he could after them, and got to the street just in
time to see Guziel disappear in another grand flash of white.� He rushed to the woman�s side, and gasped
out loud at the scene before him.
Atanya lay lifeless on the ground, hair clinging to
her petite face by the blood that had been splattered onto it.� There was a vicious gash across her chest,
oozing thick red liquid onto the pavement, where her still-twitching heart had
been ripped from her chest and tossed carelessly aside, left to pump out its
remaining amounts of blood onto the waiting concrete.� Her legs appeared to be broken, so unnatural was their
arrangement.� She seemed to stare
straight up at Gabriel, her once kind blue eyes forever frozen in gaping fear.
The angel dropped to his knees beside her, and began
to quietly weep.� He covered his face
with his hands, feeling the saline drops roll wet down his cheek and off of his
chin.� �Forgive me,� he whispered into
his hands.� �You only crime was offering
help to a man you thought was helpless.��
He jumped slightly when Michael put a hand on his shoulder.
�Uriel will decide what you are forgiven for.� Come home, brother.� Gabriel.�
Please.�
The other angel only nodded, and he let Michael bind
his wrists with that unbreakable chain that he had always feared would be used
on him.� He had seen that chain hold
Lucifer himself, and all of his accomplices.
The next thing Gabriel�s deadened eyes noticed was
that he had returned to Heaven, Michael pushing him down to his knees by the
chains at his wrists.� He looked up a
moment later to see Metatron in front of him, Michael on his right and Uriel on
his left, both looking forlorn, with an entire congregation present to watch
the proceedings.� Gabriel couldn�t see,
for her was still bound, and his eyes were drawn to the floor once more.� But he knew that Azrael was right up in
front of the group behind him, and probably with that smug smirk on his face.
�Seraphim Gabriel,� Metatron�s quiet but powerful
voice spoke up, �you have been accused of the following crimes:� theft of a brother�s gate ring, unauthorized
exit of the gates, unauthorized contact with human, unauthorized sexual contact
with a human, verbal abuse of the celestial hierarchy, possible corruption of a
child, responsibility for the untimely death of a human, and assault of a
brother.� How do you plead?�
Without looking up, Gabriel softly whispered,
�Guilty.�� He swore he could almost hear
Michael�s heart crack.
�Then Uriel, proclaim your judgment.�
Uriel stepped forward, and spoke in the steadiest
voice he could muster.� �Seraphim
Gabriel, in light of your crimes, I have decided that your punishment�is that
you will fall.�
Then Gabriel�s head jerked up, eyes wide with fear,
and he saw the same look on Michael�s face out of the corner of his eye.
�You are hereby sentenced to exactly 2,000 years in
the darkest part of Hell�no more, and no less.�
That is your fate.�� He looked to
two angels standing near Gabriel� �Take
him.�
The two took Gabriel by the arms and lifted him to
his feet.� The black-haired Seraph
looked up to Michael, eyes full of sorrow but not a hint of regret.� He mouthed the word �goodbye� before he
disappeared with his escorts.
Blackness then overcame him, and he found himself
thrown onto a cold, damp ground of stone, his wrists free, but his cheek
scratching roughly against the rock.� He
winced, and managed to pull himself to his knees in time to see the gates of
Hell slam shut behind him.� ��What have
I done?�� He sighed, and rubbed his sore
cheek with the back of his hand, looking around to take in his
surroundings.� Only stone was around
him, damp stone that made you shudder just to look at it, and no sign of
anything inviting anywhere.� Then he
felt a hand on his back, and looked up into the warmest, most gentle face he
had ever had the distinct pleasure of gazing at.
A pair of kind, gold-colored eyes looked down at him
with a smile inside to match the one on his thin lips.� A long, slender hand idly pushed aside a
lock of silver, dead-straight hair, sending a ripple down the length of the
hair, which extended down the length of his body to pool around his feet just a
bit.� He then offered that same hand to
Gabriel to help him to his feet.
�Lucifer��
�Gabriel�I know everything that�s happened to
you.� You will be safe here, my
brother.� I swear it.�� Lucifer smiled, and accepted the tight
embrace Gabriel wrapped him in.
In Heaven, the congregation eventually dissipated,
Metatron went about his business as though nothing had changed, and Michael was
left alone with Uriel.� The redhead, who
had attempted to look strong while there were others present, now dropped to
his hands and knees, tears slipping down his cheeks.
�How could I�?�
�You did what was right,� Michael said shakily, his
eyes burning with unshed tears. �No matter how hard it seems, or how cruel.�
��I am sorry, Michael�you were closer to him than
any of us could hope to be.�
�It�s alright,� the other returned with a well-done
false smile.� �I�ll see him again soon.�
This brought a soft sob from Uriel, who dropped his
head to stare at the floor.� �Forgive
me�Michael�I have committed a crime far worse than that of Gabriel��
�Don�t say such things.� You did nothing.�
�I condemned my brother�I should be at the will of
my own judgment as well, should I not?�
�Uriel��
The angel of judgment touched his throat, a pensive
expression settling on his gentle features.�
�With this voice, I sent my brother to 2,000 years of suffering and
pain��� With a wince, he sunk his
fingernails deep into the flesh at his throat, dragging them across as though
searching.� His eyes widened when he
found his vocal cords, which he ripped from his neck and tossed aside, bringing
one last strangled cry from his lips as blood trickled out from between them,
much more slowly than it burst from his throat.� He clutched at the vicious gash that remained, his eyes squeezing
shut, and he let out a cough as the wound began to heal over into a horrific
scar, a tiny bit more blood escaping his lips.�
Michael could only stare in utter disbelief as the
blood that poured down Uriel�s front, and the discarded organ, which lay beside
him. ��Uriel�Uriel, you��� His eyes narrowed, and he looked away,
unable to bring himself to watch the scene before him.
When the wound in his neck was somewhat healed, now
a filthy mess of ragged flesh and dripping blood, Uriel raised his head to his
brother, and whispered in his mind, �Even this cannot atone for the wrong I
have done today.�