Uriel's Loyalties

Set some considerable time after Exile.

Alex, Noma and Arika; who they now knew to be Evelyn herself, could only watch in anticipation as Michael, Gabriel and Uriel circled each other in the snow. They were stood in the middle of a frozen sea with nothing except ice and snow for miles in all directions. A large number of Gabriel's followers prevented the Alex and Noma from going to Michael's aid. They knew that he was strong, but if the three Archangel's began to fight, it was impossible to tell who could come out on top.

"Really, Uriel, I never expected this from you," Gabriel smirked, "Treachery is a trait reserved for Michael, isn't it?"

"You're one to talk," Uriel scoffed, flipping her sword in her hand.

"Working with the humans to bring us both down," Gabriel continued, still smiling, "Plotting with your lover, a queen, no less...you've done well for yourself, sister, she looks like quite a playful pet," he chuckled.

"All this time you were plotting against me, against both of us and yet still you pledged your sword to me," Michael frowned.

"And to me," his brother added.

"How could you do this?" Michael asked her, his hurt evident in his tone and expression.

"How could I not?" she glared, "All the two of you ever do is fight like the children you are. It's no wonder that father left us, you drove him away with your bickering. This war needs to end...and if it means destroying my brothers...then so be it."

"We drove him away?!" Gabriel yelled, angrily, "I've acted to bring him back!"

"By slaughtering his greatest creation," she shot back.

"They are what drove father away! We are his greatest creation!" Gabriel growled. "We are celestial beings. We are his children."

"Did we not break all bonds of love and loyalty to convince Michael that that was not true?" she frowned, "Did we not break our own hearts as well as our brother's body to save them?"

"And what a waste of time that was," he sneered. "Dear brother Michael had it right."

"I was wrong," Michael told him.

"Oh, will you drop the sanctimonious act for one minute, Michael!" Gabriel threw his head upwards and rolled his eyes. "You can't see the truth because of your guilt. I understand that, but this really is getting ridiculous even by your standards. A few centuries would have been enough, but over two thousand years, brother! Even after they betray you, you still won't turn on them! I did everything I could to make you see them for what they are and you still refuse to see reason."

"Yes," Michael breathed, "You allowed one of our own to endure his suffering alone to teach me a lesson."

"I was surprised that you left the woman alive," Gabriel admitted, "I'll admit I was expecting you to kill her."

"I know," his twin replied.

"What I failed to take into account was just how stubborn your Chosen One can be. He brought you out of your anger, didn't he? And after I allowed those humans to imprison me," Gabriel lamented, "Still, it wasn't a total loss."

"That's enough," Uriel snapped, raising her sword, "No more of them will die in this feud."

"You think you can take us both, sister?" Gabriel raised an eyebrow.

"I won't fight you, Uriel," Michael told her, lowering his own dual swords.

"Then you will die," she replied calmly and leapt forwards, using her wings to propel her with great speed.

"Michael!" Alex yelled as Uriel's sword lunged for Michael's throat.

Michael's eyes went wide with shock and his body froze, ignoring all his instincts and he jumped aside a second too late. His sister's blade grazed his neck and he raised a hand to quickly cover the bleeding wound.

Alex moved to run forwards before Michael could be attacked again. but before even Gabriel's followers could stop him, Noma did. Her orders from Michael were to keep him safe no matter the situation and letting him run headlong into a fight between three Archangel's was not a wise move.

"What are you doing? We have to help Michael!" he yelled when she blocked his path.

"This is not our fight," Noma told him.

"The hell it isn't," he snapped.

"Chosen One or not, this is for them to settle, not you," she replied quickly.

"Fight or die, Michael!" Uriel cried, jumping forwards again at her brother.

The second before he sword could reach him again, Gabriel had flown forwards, pushed Michael to the ground and now blocked Uriel's sword with his own, standing over his brother with his wings outstretched protectively.

"You'll have to get past me first, sister," he hissed at her, locking their swords together. He swung his sword forcibly and made her take step back from them both and Uriel stared at him in confusion.

"Gabriel, what are you doing?" Michael furrowed his brow, but Gabriel didn't answer him.

"Well, I suppose I shouldn't be surprised," Uriel sighed, glaring at Gabriel over her sword. "Then you will fall first, brother," she growled, raising her weapon to meet his with a loud 'clang.'

An elaborate dance of rapid movements and elegant leaps began as they ducked, dove and swerved around each other, their wings disappearing as they moved. It was difficult to keep up with such a fast moving fight.

Michael watched with a desperate expression, as his brother and sister fought, and his hands tightened around his swords. He flew into the air and used his wings to create a strong gust of wind which forced them apart and he landed in between them, snow and ice floating around him like dust glimmering in the sunlight.

"That's enough!" Michael yelled, standing between his siblings, a sword pointed at each one.

"Stand aside, Michael," Gabriel ordered sternly.

"No. This will not bring father back," he replied.

"I'm not doing this only to bring him back," Uriel said, "I'm doing it because it is the right thing...sound familiar, Michael?"

"You played us against each other, Uriel," Gabriel hissed over at her, "That's a cowards tactic!"

"So is possessing the eight balls," she shot back, "And it is disgusting, too."

"It's a means to an end," he snapped, "We have more power at our disposal here than we could ever have dreamed of. You're both so righteous...you refuse to test your limits."

"You should know better, we don't have this power to test on those weaker than us, we are supposed to be the protectors," Uriel said.

"I am protecting them," Michael turned to her, "You know that."

"Maybe for now, brother, but you a loose cannon, your anger is a danger to them. You have proven this repeatedly. It's really a wonder that they survived your 'protection' for so long," she sneered at him.

Michael let out an uneven breath in an attempt to calm himself as she continued, "You're angry now, aren't you? I can see it in your eyes. I'll be honest, at first I gave serious thought to helping you...but I can't risk another Flood, Michael. You're a risk I can't ignore."

"I swore never to harm them again," Michael replied.

"And if your Chosen One hadn't stopped you from killing your own lover, what would have happened? I know. You'd have gone on another killing spree," she shot back, "And they wouldn't have been able to stop you."

Uriel then lashed out at Michael and he quickly blocked her attack, "But I will stop you before you can make any more mistakes," she said. She swung out her sword and narrowly missed swiping her brother across his chest before he leapt backwards out of the way.

Gabriel made to fly over to attack Uriel but Michael glared at him quickly, "Stay out of this, Gabriel," he hissed.

"Well, you've changed your tune Mr. Pacifist," Gabriel muttered with a scoff as he spun his sword in his hand, nonchalantly.

"We don't have to fight, Uriel," Michael said, "I'm not your enemy."

"No," she shook her head, "You are your own worst enemy, Michael, and I'm sorry, but the mortals don't need the threat of you hanging over them."

"Do you really hate me so much?" he asked, his hurt evident in his tone.

"We all have to choose a side, brother," Uriel sighed, "I didn't start this war...but I will end it."

"Even if it means destroying your own?" Gabriel questioned.

"No more than you," she sneered, sheathing her sword and standing tall. "When next we meet, it will be as enemies...no more pretence," she said to her brothers. Without breaking eye contact, she walked and wrapped an arm around her lover and flew them both into the sky.

"...Well, I'll admit to being a little surprised," Gabriel shrugged when she was gone.

"You had no idea of her true motives? None?" Michael asked him.

"None at all," his brother answered, "She played her part rather well, didn't she. But for now...we have business of our own, don't we? It's just the two of us now, Michael," Gabriel said, beginning to walk in predatory circles around Michael again. "What'll you do now that I'm all yours? You can't just let me go, can you? Not when I'll kill more of your precious mortals. You have a chance to stop me...so will you kill me?" he asked. "Bear in mind, that if you do, your lovely lieutenant and the Chosen One over there may not fare so well," he added, his expression turning cold.

Michael remained silent as he stared at his brother with a look of utmost regret. He did not want to fight Gabriel, but what choice did he have?

"Oh, but I forget," his brother continued, "You have fought a brother once, haven't you? Do you remember Lucifer? He remembers you, Michael, he remembers...and he does not forgive." *1

"I did what I had to do," Michael breathed.

"Yes, you did. You defended the mortals against one of our own. After father banished him what you did nearly destroyed him, and you wonder that he's so...dark now."

"He needed to be stopped."

"He needed to be free, not chained down like an animal!"

"What are they talking about?" Alex asked Noma quietly.

"Lucifer...he was banished for rebelling against our father," she told him, "He was banished to earth, stripped of his wings. Father hoped he would learn mercy and pity but he didn't. Michael was sent to remove Lucifer and his followers and dispatch them to hell for all eternity."

"Oh," Alex breathed.

"They call you the greatest of angels, Michael," Gabriel sneered, circling his brother like a lion about to pounce. "You're nothing but a traitor, a disgrace," he hissed. "The mortals value you for your power, nothing more. You protect them with your very being and they give you nothing. They take everything from you! When will you learn that I'm doing you a favour in wiping them out?!"

Michael leapt forwards at his brother, swinging his dual swords which Gabriel blocked with his own, both of them forced to use all of their strength to try and force the other back.

"Enough," Michael said through gritted teeth, his eyes dark.

"There," Gabriel laughed, "There's that temper, little brother, there's the anger; you see, Uriel was right. Fight, Michael, fight me now."

Michael let out a furious yell as the two clashed against each other, fighting for dominance in a second, lethal dance. Gabriel lashed out and forced his brother to duck under his sword, Michael then took the opportunity to knock his brother from his feet, forcing him to land onto the ground on his back.

He then knocked the sword from Gabriel's hand and dug his twin swords into the ground on either side if his brothers' neck, locking him to the snow beneath them

"Go on, then," Gabriel dared his brother, "You had this opportunity all those years ago and you refused...you may not get another chance." *2

Michael glared down at his brother, his breath shaking in his anger and the rush of battle ringing in his ears. Memories came to him unbidden of better times with his brother; of hearing his voice through the darkness and of their bond that had once been so strong, now turned sour.

"...No," he breathed, "I won't," he said, raising his blades and taking a step back.

"Won't or can't?" Gabriel sneered.

"Go," Michael told him sadly, "Begone, Gabriel."

Gabriel reached for his discarded sword before he stood gracefully and his wings emended from his back again. "You'll regret this soon, Michael, you should have killed me," he said. "And your precious mortals will pay the price," he smiled before taking off, his swarm of loyal angels following him into the air.

"What did you...did you just let him go?!" Alex called over to Michael, "You could have stopped him."

"Don't underestimate him, Alex," Michael told him, sheathing his swords.

"But you..."

"Despite all he's done, he's still my brother and...he's right," the Archangel sighed, "I...can't kill him...I never could." *3

"Well, that's just..." Alex threw up his arms in frustration, turning away from the angel.

*1 In the series so far, Lucifer was only mentioned by Michael once in the last episode, he called him the Star of Morning who was born alone. I'll add more to my version of his back-story eventually.

*2 & 3 Reference to the end of 'Legion'.