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gotten far before a beautiful female assistant of the Council’s dressed in a luminous modern robe stopped him.
    “Jackson,” she said calmly.
    “What?” Jacks spun around angrily on the woman.
    “You’re wanted in the solarium.”
    • • •
    Gabriel was unmistakable as he sat on a bench near the tree in the solarium, with his mass of lustrous white hair and seemingly ageless face illuminated by the artificial light. The sanctuary solarium had been built many years ago as one of its first features. Situated on the edge of the sanctuary, near the passage to the Council chambers, it was reserved exclusively for the Council and its closest circle. Jackson had never been inside.
    Gabriel wore his normal golden robe, which seemed almost to glow as it touched his skin. Jackson’s stepfather, Mark Godspeed, was there as well, standing just off to the side of the bench alongside a few advisers to the Council. Behind them, a small stone bridge crossed an indoor stream that ran through the solarium. All around, lush green and flowering plants were flourishing, making a small path circling the entire area. A butterfly flitted past. Above, a span of domed, frosted glass covered the whole scene. Behind the glass, huge electric bulbs shone with the warmth and light of the sun.
    Gabriel, chief True Immortal of the Council of Twelve, leader of the Angels in the Great Awakening, founder of the NAS, looked at Jackson Godspeed and smiled.
    “I know I’ve said it before, but the armor of the Battle Angel suits you well,” Gabriel said, observing the young Angel in front of him. “Rest assured, Jackson, we will not forget your loyalty, your willingness to stand by us on the brink of the human-Angel war. Even though, thankfully, it did not come to pass.”
    “I would think of doing nothing else,” Jackson said.
    Once again Gabriel gave his ancient smile. Throughout the recent dramatic events, Jackson had found a kind of shelter with Gabriel. Far from being simply a figurehead, he was genuinely concerned about the welfare of the Angels on a daily basis, and it showed. He could have delegated everything, but he didn’t. He felt he had a duty, and Jackson admired him for that.
    “There is a reason we wanted to see you, Guardian Godspeed,” Gabriel said. “Jackson, we’ve been discussing the possibility of helping the humans.”
    Jacks struggled to mask the shock that ran across his face.
    Gabriel continued. “It is obviously quite difficult for us just to stand idly by. Even if the humans were planning to turn on us with the Immortals Bill. After all, we have ancient ties and lines of duty to humanity, stretching back far, far before we ever left Home and made ourselves known on Earth.”
    Mark nodded silently at Gabriel’s side.
    A flood of emotion crashed across Jackson’s face, coloring it, as he thought of what might happen between him and Maddy if the Angels could rejoin the humans. It might not be too late after all. But the painful image of her in the arms of that . . .
pilot
chased away his fresh-born hopes. Gabriel looked at Jackson and smiled once again.
    “I can see you have some feelings on the subject, Jacks,” Gabriel said. “Do you mind sharing them?”
    Jacks hesitated a moment, looking to both Gabriel and Mark. He wondered what the right answer was. What did he
really
feel?
    “It’s hard to say, sir,” Jacks said uncertainly.
    “That’s why we’ve been discussing this for so long here in the solarium. There’s no easy answer. You’re right to see that. Prudence in these matters is vital,” Gabriel said. “That said, Jacks, after our debate, I still think we have no choice but to leave the humans to their own devices. Even if we’d not had problems with them and Linden, there is just too much at stake for us to compromise everything by entering the battle against the demons.” Gabriel paused as if to let this monumental fact sink in.
    “The fact of the matter is,” he went on, “we did