Archangel
Authors: Sharon Shinn
“The most promising and original writer of fantasy to come along since Robin McKinley.”
—Peter S. Beagle, author of
The Last Unicorn
“The spellbinding Ms. Shinn writes with elegant imagination and a steely grace, bringing a remarkable freshness that will command a wide audience.”
—
Romantic Times
ARCHANGEL
And so it came to pass
…
Through science, faith and force of will, the Harmonics carved out for themselves a society that they conceived of as perfect. Diverse peoples held together by respect for each other and the prospect of swift punishment if they disobeyed their laws. Fertile land that embraced a variety of climates and seasons. Angels to guard the mortals and mystics to guard the forbidden knowledge
.
Jehovah to watch over them all
…
Generations later, the armed starship
Jehovah
still looms over the planet of Samaria, programmed to unleash its arsenal if peace is not sustained. But an age of corruption has come to the land, threatening that peace and placing the Samarians in grave danger. Their only hope lies in the crowning of a new Archangel. The oracles have chosen for this honor the angel named Gabriel, and further decreed that he must first wed a mortal woman named Rachel.
It is his destiny and hers. And Gabriel is certain that she will greet the news of her betrothal with enthusiasm, and a devotion to duty equal to his own.
Rachel, however, has other ideas …
Other Ace Books by Sharon Shinn
MYSTIC AND RIDER
THE THIRTEENTH HOUSE
ARCHANGEL
JOVAH’S ANGEL
THE ALLELUIA FILES
ANGELICA
ANGEL-SEEKER
WRAPT IN CRYSTAL
THE SHAPE-CHANGER’S WIFE
HEART OF GOLD
SUMMERS AT CASTLE AUBURN
JENNA STARBORN
Viking / Firebird Books by Sharon Shinn
THE SAFE-KEEPER’S SECRET
THE TRUTH-TELLER’S TALE
THE DREAM-MAKER’S MAGIC
RCHANGEL
S
HARON
S
HINN
THE BERKLEY PUBLISHING GROUP
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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental. The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.
ARCHANGEL
An Ace Book / published by arrangement with the author
PRINTING HISTORY
Ace trade edition / May 1996
Ace mass-market edition / April 1997
Copyright © 1996 by Sharon Shinn.
Cover art by John Jude Palencar.
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights. Purchase only authorized editions.
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375 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014.
EISBN: 9781101554869
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PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
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If you purchased this book without a cover, you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as “unsold and destroyed” to the publisher, and neither the author nor the publisher has received any payment for this “stripped book.”
For my aunt, Mary Krewson
CAST OF CHARACTERS
In the Eyrie
Gabriel, leader of the host; an angel
Nathan, his brother; an angel
Hannah, a mortal woman; widow of the former leader
Judith, a young mortal woman
Obadiah, an angel
Matthew, an Edori
In Monteverde
Ariel, leader of the host; an angel
Magdalena, her sister; also an angel
In Windy Point
Raphael, leader of the host and Archangel of Samaria
Saul, his foremost follower; also an angel
Leah, Raphael’s wife; the angelica
In Semorrah
Lord Jethro, a wealthy merchant
Daniel, his son
Lady Clara, Jethro’s wife
Lady Mary, Daniel’s bride
Anna, a bondwoman
Rachel, an Edori slave
Others
Elijah Harth, a wealthy Manadavvi landowner
Abel Vashir, another Manadavvi landowner
Malachi of Breven, a Jansai war leader
Peter, a former priest now residing in Velora
Naomi of the Chievens, an Edori woman
Luke, her husband
Josiah, oracle of Bethel
Ezekiel, oracle of Jordana
Jezebel, oracle of Gaza
S
AMARIA
C
HAPTER
O
NE
T
he angel Gabriel went to the oracle on Mount Sinai, looking for a wife. He did not go gladly, even hopefully, as befitted a man eager to find his lifelong companion. In fact, he had put off this journey as long as he could, but his deadline was rapidly approaching. In six months, he would lead the annual Gloria to praise and gladden Jovah, and it was a task he would be unable to complete without his ordained partner at his side. Because he was next in line to be Archangel, and therefore Jovah had a special interest in him, Gabriel went to the Mount Sinai seer to learn who the god had chosen to be his bride.
Flying, Gabriel took less than three hours to cross the hundred and fifty miles from his home in the Eyrie to Josiah’s rock-bound retreat. It was easy flying, for the air was very thin in the valley between the two mountain ranges, with no treacherous currents such as one might encounter over the western Gaza mountains or the southern coast of Jordana. To a mortal, the frigid air this high above the ground would have been deadly, but angels carried heated blood in their veins, ideally equipping them for surviving the icy wind in the higher reaches of the stratosphere. Gabriel wore only a leather vest and leather pants, tucked into his boots, and he felt no cold.
When he arrived at Sinai, one of Josiah’s acolytes led him to the oracle’s room, moving soundlessly through the shadowy gray corridors of rock. They came at last to a small, well-lit chamber
where the oracle could be seen leaning toward a glowing plate of glass and metal embedded in the slate-rock wall. The acolyte put a finger to his lips.
“Quietly,” the boy said. “He is communing with the god.”
Gabriel nodded, and gestured for the boy to return the way he had come. Clearly the acolyte would have preferred to stay, making sure Gabriel did not disturb Josiah at his prayers, but very few people would gainsay an angel, particularly this one. The boy left, and Gabriel leaned against the wall, waiting courteously. He was nothing if not respectful of the will of the god.
In a matter of moments, Josiah straightened, murmured an
amen
, and touched the face of the lighted screen. Instantly, the plate went blank. Gabriel stepped forward.
“Josiah,” he said.
The oracle turned to him with a smile. He was a small, gray man, nearly lost in a voluminous blue robe. Unlike the angels, he suffered from the cold.
“Gabriel!” he exclaimed. “An unexpected pleasure.”
The angel laughed, coming forward to take the seer’s hand and bow over it. “Come, now,” Gabriel said straightening. “You must have been expecting me anytime these past six months.”
“These past three years, more like,” Josiah retorted. “If by that you mean you have come at last to seek my advice about your bride.”
“Jovah’s advice,” Gabriel corrected.