The war between Heaven and Hell is over. The armies of light were decimated by the legions of darkness. It has been years since the fighting existed in earnest. Mankind has been subjugated or have embraced the darkness. Angels, those that have survived, have been driven underground.
But now an archangel has descended to Earth.
Uriel is one of the two main characters in Archangel and the Shadow’s Advent series. He is the namesake of the first book, an archangel himself. A being of great power, Uriel has been sent to Earth with no clear task set to him, but a desire to push back the tides of darkness.
So, in today’s Behind the Scenes blog, get to know Uriel the archangel.
Uriel is the Fire of God, one of the seven archangels that lead Heaven’s host. In traditional apocryphal works, Uriel is depicted as a strong, unrelenting angel of repentance. In fact, where he has appeared in theological literature, Uriel is sometimes as merciless as some demons. He is a warrior archangel, created for the sole purpose of meting out Heaven’s justice.
The Fire of God is also described as a guardian. He is depicted with wings that are the red and orange of the sun. He was known to stand outside the gardens of Eden, his flaming sword in one hand and his other hand holding fire itself.
The demon roared in anger and came at the angel with a renewed fury. The archangel smiled and readied his weapons. Uriel preferred when emotion blinded his foes.
It made them sloppy.
Sidestepping the demon’s swing, the angel sliced open his assailant’s bicep. With a yelp the demon dropped its weapon. Uriel swept his foot around and tripped the beast up, dropping it to its back. Falling to one knee, the archangel plunged both daggers into the demon’s chest.
A shuffle from behind was the only warning the angel had that the other two demons were coming at him. He spun and threw both of his daggers, working on instinct alone. Each of his blades found their marks in the demons’ dark hearts.
When I adopted Uriel as one of my main characters, I knew that I wanted an archangel that I could use for awe-inspiring action scenes, but with enough flaws to make him believable. Uriel is a powerful individual, but there is a price that comes with that power.
I did not want to make Uriel as brutal as some sources depict him. He is one of the heroes, one of the ones that is supposed to take back the world from the darkness, not embody it. That being said, the same fire that Uriel harnesses is only barely kept at bay.
"How could you keep this from me?” Uriel roared. The colour faded from his eyes, leaving only white orbs in their place. The angel was so filled with rage that he did not care who, or what, heard him.
“I trusted you,” Uriel spat the words. “You have deceived me into facing Death!” The dry grass around Uriel began to smoke as the archangel’s anger was made manifest.
Sometimes Uriel’s fire can lead to terrible, disastrous results. Though he has nothing but good intentions in his heart, the Fire of God is something that is difficult to control, even for an archangel. What happens when an archangel’s fire gets the better of him? You will have to read Archangel to find out!
Though Uriel is an archangel, his powers are limited by the black clouds that smother the earth. He is an expert in martial combat, using his daggers, flaming sword, and what abilities he has available to him to renew the fight against the demons that rule the world. But being kept in the confines of Heaven for a decade while his brothers and sisters have been slaughtered on Earth has sheltered the archangel from the horrors that others had suffered.
Despite his skill, his conviction, and his abilities, Uriel will have faced nothing like this before.