Fic: A History of Heaven (Gabriel/Various Angels, PG-13 for most) Sammael’s Interlude
For full notes and other chapters, please see the Masterpost.
Notes: This is the first of the Interludes, five chapters set before the main story, focusing on the Archangels when they were young, before Earth, before Heaven, before time. Sammael is roughly equivalent to a thirteen-year-old here, while Michael is early twenties.
In this story, before Lucifer fell, his name was Sammael. He was not Lucifer in Heaven.
There is one other canon character operating under an OC name, but I wish for his identity to remain unknown.
Chapter Rating: PG-13
Chapter word count: 1,371
Chapter Summary: Even the Archangels were young once. Sammael helps his Father create the third angel.
SAMMAEL'S INTERLUDE
When Sammael awoke, he had been a tiny thing, with pudgy, clumsy fingers and hundreds of little wings that altogether added up to maybe one of Michael’s. His brother had towered over him, a giant in the darkness of the Void, and his Father had been unfathomably massive.
Sammael had grown from those early days. Michael was still bigger, but Sammael was over three quarters of his height now. He was what Michael called “in-between,” definitely not a baby anymore, but not yet caught up to Michael who was broad-shouldered and solid, the very picture of power and grace.
In contrast, Sammael was a weedy little thing, with too-large wings and too-thin limbs, still occasionally getting tangled up in his feathers or falling head over halo if he tried to stop too fast. Nevertheless, he was older now, and Michael even pretended to let him explore on his own. He said he stayed behind, but Sammael wasn’t an idiot. He could always sense his brother’s presence, even if Michael veiled his grace and hid from sight. Michael was overprotective sometimes. It wasn’t like there was any true danger in the Void. It was, by definition, a void, endless miles of nothing.
That wasn’t entirely fair. Scattered throughout the Void were bits and pieces of Father’s creations, and somewhere was Father’s core, His concentrated essence.
That was where Sammael was headed today, with Michael silently following just at the edge of his perception. Sammael ignored his brother and pushed his wings harder, laughing when he saw a twinkle of light in the distance.
“Father!”
God turned to catch Sammael as the young angel careened into Him, wings flapping in a desperate bid to check his crash. Sammael managed to melt his collision into a hug, flinging his arms around his Father’s being and nuzzling in close. Father filled his heart with so much joy and love, Sammael thought it might burst out of his chest. Michael was scared of Father, but Sammael knew He would never hurt him. “I found you!”
Hello Sammael, My son.
Sammael wriggled in ecstasy as Father spoke his name, his spirit singing happily into the bleakness of the Void. His Father endured his embrace for an eon before releasing him.
What do you think?
Sammael fluttered behind God, out of His way, but leaned over His shoulder to see what He was working on now. A dormant fledgling huddled before them, tiny wings wrapped around a fragile spirit. Sammael marveled at the perfection encased in such a miniature form.
“Surely I was never that small!”
Smaller. Father’s voice was rich and sonorous, as if He was sharing a private joke with Sammael. He is your little brother, Ragariel. He will be My greatest angel, perfection itself.
Sammael looked sharply at his new brother-Ragariel-a sharp wave of bitter emotion prickling at his wings. “Greatest? Why is he the greatest? What makes him so perfect?” How could Ragariel be an improvement over Sammael himself, created to be the perfect companion?
He embodies all the best of those who came before, God answered. He has a greater capacity for love than even you. He will be stronger than even Michael. He will grow to protect you both, to guide you, to shelter you.
Sammael didn’t like the sound of his little brother already. In his experience, little brothers were meant to look up to big brothers, not the other way around! “And you’ll make his partner just as perfect?”
He will not have a partner. He is whole, complete, just as he is.
“Well, that won’t work!” Sammael shook his head and folded his arms across his chest. “Perfect or not, he’ll still get lonely!”
He will have you and Michael.
“Not really, no. Me and Michael will have each other. We’re partners. He’ll be separate from us. Different. Alone.”
So you think I should make him a partner?
Father sounded amused, like He wasn’t going to take Sammael seriously, but this was serious. The only thing worse than having a perfect little brother would be to have two of them! Sammael crossed his arms tighter. “No. Because his partner would have to be identical, or their partnership would be unbalanced. A partner is supposed to fill your holes, but he doesn’t have holes. So his partner can’t have holes either. They’d both have to be perfect. Identical. And that’s just wrong. A partner should complete you, not be you. A partner should be different.”
Your point is valid, and your argument sound. Father sounded pleased with Sammael’s interpretation of the situation. How do you propose we fix this problem?
Even though Father smiled like He already had a plan, Sammael puffed up with pride that he had identified a flaw and was being asked his opinion. “Split him in half,” he declared, pointing to the slumbering Ragariel. “A partnership together should be perfect. Make him two angels who come together as perfection.”
God drew forth a sharp shard of His grace and offered it to Sammael. Since this is your solution, would you like the honor?
Sammael’s eyes widened as he wrapped both hands around the shard. He was wielding a tool of the Creator! He twisted to look back at Michael, forgetting to pretend his own partner wasn’t there. “Michael! Come see!”
Michael dropped his veil and flew toward the pair, ducking into a deep bow before God. “Father.” He was always so respectful and reverent of their Father. Sometimes it annoyed Sammael, like right now. He was holding a tool of God, and Michael only had eyes for God Himself!
Your new brother, Ragariel, God said, sweeping Michael forward to see. Sammael will make him two angels, twins.
Now Michael looked up at Sammael, pride in his eyes, his grace, his voice. “I’m sure Sammael will perform this task flawlessly.”
Sammael’s wings spread even further, loving how Michael so selflessly appreciated him. Michael was an even better angel than Sammael, as any decent big brother should be. He didn’t deserve to be overshadowed by perfect little Ragariel!
“Watch me, Michael! I’m going to make brothers for us!”
Sammael hefted the shard over his head (with only a little help from Father) and swung it down, aiming for the center of Ragariel’s tiny head. Sharp grace sliced easily into Ragariel’s unprotected spirit. The fledgling’s wings thrashed as if in pain, but his eyes remained closed and he remained utterly silent. Even as he split in half, he reformed into two smaller but entirely whole fledglings curled upon themselves. Their frantically beating wings stilled, wrapping around their forms again.
God drew his grace from Sammael and reached out to touch the fledglings. You, celestial being, have been created to be an angel of the Lord. I name you.
The fledglings opened their eyes in unison and unfurled their wings properly, flailing in the emptiness. Michael darted forward to scoop the nearest into his arms, stroking those tiny wings to calm his panic. Sammael followed his lead with the other, feeling downy soft feathers beating desperately against his fingers.
God touched Michael’s fledgling. Raphael. Then He touched Sammael’s. Gabriel.
Gabriel looked up at Sammael with clear eyes, his wings slowing but still twitching and stirring in the darkness. He stretched one fat little hand up and patted Sammael’s face before bursting into bright giggles that chimed across the Void. Sammael felt a rush of protectiveness toward this little brother, this angel he helped create. He folded his wings around the fledgling and leaned in to nuzzle his head. “I’m Sammael,” he whispered. “I’m your big brother.”
“Brother!” Gabriel chirped back, flinging himself forward. He was trying to hug, Sammael belatedly realized, but his short arms couldn’t even wrap around Sammael’s neck.
Sammael closed his eyes and held Gabriel close to the core of his grace, feeling out his new brother’s undeveloped grace, exploring his strengths and weaknesses and noting the presence of flaws, gaping holes where his character had been sliced cleanly in two. Imperfect little Gabriel was already better than Ragariel. Sammael would protect this fledgling, guide him, teach him everything. “I will always love you,” he promised, already knowing it to be true.
Next...
Notes: This is the first of the Interludes, five chapters set before the main story, focusing on the Archangels when they were young, before Earth, before Heaven, before time. Sammael is roughly equivalent to a thirteen-year-old here, while Michael is early twenties.
In this story, before Lucifer fell, his name was Sammael. He was not Lucifer in Heaven.
There is one other canon character operating under an OC name, but I wish for his identity to remain unknown.
Chapter Rating: PG-13
Chapter word count: 1,371
Chapter Summary: Even the Archangels were young once. Sammael helps his Father create the third angel.
SAMMAEL'S INTERLUDE
When Sammael awoke, he had been a tiny thing, with pudgy, clumsy fingers and hundreds of little wings that altogether added up to maybe one of Michael’s. His brother had towered over him, a giant in the darkness of the Void, and his Father had been unfathomably massive.
Sammael had grown from those early days. Michael was still bigger, but Sammael was over three quarters of his height now. He was what Michael called “in-between,” definitely not a baby anymore, but not yet caught up to Michael who was broad-shouldered and solid, the very picture of power and grace.
In contrast, Sammael was a weedy little thing, with too-large wings and too-thin limbs, still occasionally getting tangled up in his feathers or falling head over halo if he tried to stop too fast. Nevertheless, he was older now, and Michael even pretended to let him explore on his own. He said he stayed behind, but Sammael wasn’t an idiot. He could always sense his brother’s presence, even if Michael veiled his grace and hid from sight. Michael was overprotective sometimes. It wasn’t like there was any true danger in the Void. It was, by definition, a void, endless miles of nothing.
That wasn’t entirely fair. Scattered throughout the Void were bits and pieces of Father’s creations, and somewhere was Father’s core, His concentrated essence.
That was where Sammael was headed today, with Michael silently following just at the edge of his perception. Sammael ignored his brother and pushed his wings harder, laughing when he saw a twinkle of light in the distance.
“Father!”
God turned to catch Sammael as the young angel careened into Him, wings flapping in a desperate bid to check his crash. Sammael managed to melt his collision into a hug, flinging his arms around his Father’s being and nuzzling in close. Father filled his heart with so much joy and love, Sammael thought it might burst out of his chest. Michael was scared of Father, but Sammael knew He would never hurt him. “I found you!”
Hello Sammael, My son.
Sammael wriggled in ecstasy as Father spoke his name, his spirit singing happily into the bleakness of the Void. His Father endured his embrace for an eon before releasing him.
What do you think?
Sammael fluttered behind God, out of His way, but leaned over His shoulder to see what He was working on now. A dormant fledgling huddled before them, tiny wings wrapped around a fragile spirit. Sammael marveled at the perfection encased in such a miniature form.
“Surely I was never that small!”
Smaller. Father’s voice was rich and sonorous, as if He was sharing a private joke with Sammael. He is your little brother, Ragariel. He will be My greatest angel, perfection itself.
Sammael looked sharply at his new brother-Ragariel-a sharp wave of bitter emotion prickling at his wings. “Greatest? Why is he the greatest? What makes him so perfect?” How could Ragariel be an improvement over Sammael himself, created to be the perfect companion?
He embodies all the best of those who came before, God answered. He has a greater capacity for love than even you. He will be stronger than even Michael. He will grow to protect you both, to guide you, to shelter you.
Sammael didn’t like the sound of his little brother already. In his experience, little brothers were meant to look up to big brothers, not the other way around! “And you’ll make his partner just as perfect?”
He will not have a partner. He is whole, complete, just as he is.
“Well, that won’t work!” Sammael shook his head and folded his arms across his chest. “Perfect or not, he’ll still get lonely!”
He will have you and Michael.
“Not really, no. Me and Michael will have each other. We’re partners. He’ll be separate from us. Different. Alone.”
So you think I should make him a partner?
Father sounded amused, like He wasn’t going to take Sammael seriously, but this was serious. The only thing worse than having a perfect little brother would be to have two of them! Sammael crossed his arms tighter. “No. Because his partner would have to be identical, or their partnership would be unbalanced. A partner is supposed to fill your holes, but he doesn’t have holes. So his partner can’t have holes either. They’d both have to be perfect. Identical. And that’s just wrong. A partner should complete you, not be you. A partner should be different.”
Your point is valid, and your argument sound. Father sounded pleased with Sammael’s interpretation of the situation. How do you propose we fix this problem?
Even though Father smiled like He already had a plan, Sammael puffed up with pride that he had identified a flaw and was being asked his opinion. “Split him in half,” he declared, pointing to the slumbering Ragariel. “A partnership together should be perfect. Make him two angels who come together as perfection.”
God drew forth a sharp shard of His grace and offered it to Sammael. Since this is your solution, would you like the honor?
Sammael’s eyes widened as he wrapped both hands around the shard. He was wielding a tool of the Creator! He twisted to look back at Michael, forgetting to pretend his own partner wasn’t there. “Michael! Come see!”
Michael dropped his veil and flew toward the pair, ducking into a deep bow before God. “Father.” He was always so respectful and reverent of their Father. Sometimes it annoyed Sammael, like right now. He was holding a tool of God, and Michael only had eyes for God Himself!
Your new brother, Ragariel, God said, sweeping Michael forward to see. Sammael will make him two angels, twins.
Now Michael looked up at Sammael, pride in his eyes, his grace, his voice. “I’m sure Sammael will perform this task flawlessly.”
Sammael’s wings spread even further, loving how Michael so selflessly appreciated him. Michael was an even better angel than Sammael, as any decent big brother should be. He didn’t deserve to be overshadowed by perfect little Ragariel!
“Watch me, Michael! I’m going to make brothers for us!”
Sammael hefted the shard over his head (with only a little help from Father) and swung it down, aiming for the center of Ragariel’s tiny head. Sharp grace sliced easily into Ragariel’s unprotected spirit. The fledgling’s wings thrashed as if in pain, but his eyes remained closed and he remained utterly silent. Even as he split in half, he reformed into two smaller but entirely whole fledglings curled upon themselves. Their frantically beating wings stilled, wrapping around their forms again.
God drew his grace from Sammael and reached out to touch the fledglings. You, celestial being, have been created to be an angel of the Lord. I name you.
The fledglings opened their eyes in unison and unfurled their wings properly, flailing in the emptiness. Michael darted forward to scoop the nearest into his arms, stroking those tiny wings to calm his panic. Sammael followed his lead with the other, feeling downy soft feathers beating desperately against his fingers.
God touched Michael’s fledgling. Raphael. Then He touched Sammael’s. Gabriel.
Gabriel looked up at Sammael with clear eyes, his wings slowing but still twitching and stirring in the darkness. He stretched one fat little hand up and patted Sammael’s face before bursting into bright giggles that chimed across the Void. Sammael felt a rush of protectiveness toward this little brother, this angel he helped create. He folded his wings around the fledgling and leaned in to nuzzle his head. “I’m Sammael,” he whispered. “I’m your big brother.”
“Brother!” Gabriel chirped back, flinging himself forward. He was trying to hug, Sammael belatedly realized, but his short arms couldn’t even wrap around Sammael’s neck.
Sammael closed his eyes and held Gabriel close to the core of his grace, feeling out his new brother’s undeveloped grace, exploring his strengths and weaknesses and noting the presence of flaws, gaping holes where his character had been sliced cleanly in two. Imperfect little Gabriel was already better than Ragariel. Sammael would protect this fledgling, guide him, teach him everything. “I will always love you,” he promised, already knowing it to be true.
Next...