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Chapter 1: Leaving

Gabriel looked up at Yggdrasil. The huge tree was the center of the city of Valhalla, Asgard expanding beyond it. It's golden leaves casted a hue on the city, the sky itself many colors due to the nine realms surrounding the floating islands. He sighed, knowing this would be the last time he would see it for a while.
The last time he left like this, he had been on a mission to deliver a message to the ice giants that remained on Terra, or Earth. But a storm had thrown him off track and sent him spiraling into the icy waters, where he was later captured by humans and put into a deep sleep. He remained asleep for several decades. When he finally woke, he discovered that Azreal, the angel of death, had killed his brother Micheal. He had been infuriated and attempted several times to drag Azreal back to Asgard for the punishment he deserved.
He growled under his breath as he spread his white wings, hand brushing the spot where the ruin of Ansuz was carved into his chest. Azreal had simply showed up back to Asgard, even after his banishment and all the disrespectful he had shown both him and Odin, and Odin had done nothing about it. Azreal was unbanned without any words being spoken, and he got to keep his job. It felt like he had gotten away with a crime. Hell, he had gotten Cassiel killed. He had reasons to dislike Azreal.
He shook his head and quit thinking about it, flapping his wings and taking to the air. He flew above the city until he got to the edge of the island before diving down to Cassiel's outlook. The god had been dead for about five years, but his outlook had been preserved by Heimdall, who had also taken over the 7th gate of heaven for the dead archangel. He flew in though the open hatch in the roof, extending his legs to land.
As his boots hit the glossy marble floor, he stood straight and folded his wings right to his back and dipped his head in recognition to Heimdall, who stood waiting for him in the center of the room. Gabriel didn't have the power to travel to the different realms. He had Micheal's sword, but not all divine weapons had the power to cut through the fabric of realms and create portals. Micheal's weapon only served as a symbol of power, for its blade radiated heat like a hungry fire.
"Are you ready?" Heimdall's calm voice broke through his thoughts. "Yes." Gabriel confirmed, walking up to the god. Heimdall was a tall, stocky man with tanned skin. He wore light armor with a large horn on his side, hanging from his belt. Heimdall gestured to the side of the room, as a rainbow came in through the open hatch. It shimmered as he extended his arm, and through it a portal opened. "Remember, stay in the Ether." He reminded Gabriel. He nodded. "Thank you." He said before walking through.
There was great importance in staying in the Ether. It was a realm that mirrored Terra, down to every detail. But it was portrayed in a ghostly black and white and was always cold. Beings like himself as well as spirits resided there, in the same dimension as Terra, but different realms. There he could watch the mortal he had been assigned until their natural death.
Guardian angels were only assigned to few mortals, ones who where divine in some way or otherwise pure of heart. They had to lead them away from danger and temptations. Gabriel wondered what the mortal he had been assigned would be like. As he exited through the portal, he had to squint his eyes as they adjusted to the bright sunlight. He glanced around.
He seemed to be on a rocky cliff, on the every edge. He only had about a foot of space to stand. It didn't bother him due to his wings, but what did strike him was the person who he was standing next to. The human— he could make out a woman's figure— was standing on the cliff face with a strange contraption on her back. Before he could take in what was going on, she jumped.
He panicked, watching in shock as the woman glided down through the canyons, around another rocky cliff face and out of view. "What in the blazes... mortals are insane." He muttered to himself before taking off after her, flying above the canyon. "She's going to kill herself before I get a chance to help..." he muttered under his breath.
    He glided above the woman as she descended through the winding cliffs. He found it mildly interesting. He hadn't been to Earth in many years, so he was out of touch with their inventions and progressions. But mortals were simple creatures. He expected to be unsurprised. He dove down to land as the woman descended.
   He landed a minute after her. She took off her goggles, a wide smile plastered on her face. "Whoo, that was wild! These cliffs are awesome for paragliding!" She spoke to herself, gathering her gear. Gabriel followed along boredly, cerulean eyes hooded as he gazed across the sandy landscape. They were in some kind of desert. Seeing as the woman spoke English, he figured they were in the western part of the middle Americas.
   He took in the woman's features as she got back to what mortals called a 'car' or 'vehicle'. He had seen early versions of the motor powered inventions, but they had come a long way in such a short time. As she took off her gear, he saw that she was a short, athletic woman. She had a good figure and lean muscles. Her skin was light, though showed signs of  frequenting the sun's rays. She had freckles across her arms, and her hair was a light grey with streaks of lavender through it. Her eyes shone light blue and she wore a white sleeveless shirt with black athletic shorts.
   He was a a bit shocked by the amount of skin she showed, but he had heard women had gained much more freedom to do as they pleased in the past few decades. A lot of gossip came from the lower classed angels such as the guardians, dominions, powers, and sometimes even the Valkyries. Thinking about the Valkyries reminded him of Azreal once more, and he scowled.
   As he followed the woman's lead and sat in the passenger seat of the car, he got lost in thought gazing out the window. Azreal had been stuck on Earth for around seven years after his banishment. Rumors around the court had said he had been captured and held captive. There he had met the mortal friend he dragged around with him. It was that same friend— named something along the lines of Trippy— who had helped him escape from his containment. He should have tore out his heart then.
    The mortal had insulted him by punching him across the face. He always stuck up for Azreal and was for some reason allowed in Asgard. He always pulled tricks on the guards and Odin— putting curses on them and attacking Odin's ankles. He had no idea why Odin himself didn't smite the two of them.
   He attempted to calm down as he looked back to the mortal. He had yet to learn her name. Suddenly a ringing sound blared out, and he jumped. She took a rectangular black object out of her pocket and the ringing stopped. A voice sounded through the object.
  "Hey Alex! How did your trip go?" It was a male voice. He listened closely. "Hey Brian, it went great! You were totally right about this spot, next time we should go together." She said while steering the car, moving onto a new topic without much thought. "Oh by the way, have you seen the new bio project? I we're grouping together again, right?" She asked.

      "Yeah, of course. Do you have anything else planned this week though? For I know when we can work on it." Brains voice once again came through the machine. "Tomorrow I'm going surfing, but that's it." Alex replied. Gabriel turned away from her and just stared out at the road ahead. At least this will not be boring. He thought to himself.  Alex continued talking until she pulled into what he guessed to be her house. 

   The house was high up on a hill that overlooked the ocean, stairs leading down to the beach. The walls were whitewashed brick with a tiled light brown roof. The house itself was large and looked to be able to fit three people comfortably, with large windows letting the sun pour in. The other houses were spaced graciously apart, and the yard was made of sand with gardens surrounded by smooth rocks. 

     Gabriel was zoned out as he followed Alex down the driveway, taking everything in. He tended to find himself lost in his own mind often. Besides, he needed to know his surroundings. This mortal seemed to be reckless, so he wanted to be alert in case anything happened. He had yet to find out what was so important about this mortal. He hoped it was just a normal case, being she was just a good person who deserved to be protected. The alternative would be she was a prophet or some kind of holy figure, which he would have to protect from demons in the Ether. 

   A shiver went down his spine as he passed from the hot midday sun and into the cold house. He was baffled by the temperature difference. What is this magic? Or is it some kind of invention? He thought, confused. I have been gone for far too long. He followed, studying the woman as she put down her gear and laid down on the couch, closing her eyes for a moment. "I cannot believe Odin roped me into guardian duty again... It is below me." He growled softly to himself. He was an archangel, first to the throne, guardian of the first gate of Heaven! He should be helping Odin run Asgard, organize the ever-flowing waves of souls, helping the court function correctly.

   But when he had went missing, Micheal died, and Azreal banned from Asgard, their system had crumbled. With two archangels out, the Heavens had lost its ability to function correctly. The lower classes had to pick up the slack, and many were fighting for control and for the arch's positions to be filled. Azreal's Valkyeries were forced to cover the two gate's onslought of souls and stopped bringing warriors to Valhalla. They struggled to keep up with the souls without Azreal's time-slowing abilities. And meanwhile, he had been forced to a deep sleep, useless.

    When he had come back, he found that Asgard's structure had begun to be rebuilt, and a bit of normalcy was put into place. But when he had appeared back home, he was unable to hop right back into his duties and work. So here he was, only a month after he had escaped that wretched prison of a labroatory. He had shown those mortals the true power of a god when he turned the whole place to ash...

  he took another glance at Alex, who had begun working on homework. He figured that would take up a lot of her time during schooling months, so he had a lot of bordem to look forward to. He sighed and closed his crulean eyes. Odin help me, this is going to be a long few years.