Azrael, the Fallen Angel of Death

Azrael's black wings are now Jessica's.

It's an interesting plot theme, the mantle of the angel of death being put upon an unsuspecting and neophyte teenager, ripped from her future life and shoved into the younger point in life where she gave up on living and her future. She feels his pain through them, and she can't handle the power and responsibility of them as well.

They had to go to somebody, and the Horsemen chose her for a particular and special reason central to the book that has to do a lot with the theme of the book.

He is a background character throughout the story, and he comes into the forefront after he is rescued by Jessica and Becks. He provides a lot of the celestial background and narrative, and serves as a vehicle for her acceptance by the good guys' team later on. He also joins the fight, but he accepts the loss of his wings and he tries the best to make due.

I wanted the losses to be permanent in this story, and he knows he isn't getting those wings back through some sort of comic-book retcon reboot, so he tries his best to help in his weakened state. Even Jessica tries to undo her losses, and the results are so disastrous she gives up even trying. Jessica does manage to save the lives of her family, but as eerily prophesized, she had to give them up entirely in order to save them - even her older self is lost to her by the end.

Azrael is just such a cool character to write for, even without his wings. He is a man out of place and out of time, aware of the passage of every soul, knowledgeable in celestial matters, but just so out of place and vulnerable. He is not a comic-book figure like Thor, but someone scarred and weakened, but still aware of his role in the workings of Heaven and Earth.

The theme of accepting loss continues here, Azrael is too seasoned and mature to be mad at Jessica for the loss of his wings, and he is cool to the actual instigators of the plot - though I would love to see what he would do if he could confront them with his full power, it would likely be judgment day for the Four Horsemen. Still, he is injured, and he knows his best chances for a return to the status quo is through Jessica and being more of a mentor role for her, which he plays well throughout the end of the story.

He has this reserved quality to him that I find comforting, like he is certain his old job will still be there when he returns to the celestial realms. He is the one who strikes the names of souls from his book and sends them on the final journey, and he has this quiet "you shall learn" attitude towards Jessica I find fascinating. He probably knows the path she will walk, so his is a bit quiet about it at first as he helps her understand her place, and deal with the emergency at hand.

Yes, essentially, he is one of the only characters in the book with his head screwed on straight. He's wounded, but has this measure of calm to him that goes beyond a normal human's reactions - he is of the celestial realm, and acts accordingly. He also understand the time-shifting thing well, but he can't explain it to someone else. It is something he had to learn, and he knows now she must.

He would like to return to his work, but he knows it will never be the same.

Even if he is back at his "book of souls", he knows she will be the one sending souls along from now on. She actually does this by instinct during the rescue scene, which is why what happens during that scene is so critical to the story (and why it had to go so violent). She has this wonderful turn in that scene where she understands the mantle of responsibility, and actually makes some heartwarming send-offs for the souls that do not deserve punishment.

It is a critical scene, and she goes from a very-dark insanity and madness to a heartwarming shepherd of the dead in the matter of minutes. Partially because of the wings, partial (and likely) because of his proximity to her, and we see a potential and turn in her character here that I found very warm and human - despite her turning into a total monster in this scene. There is a contradiction there between the type of person who takes souls, and one who cares about sending them on their way in the proper manner.

She shows a motherly concern for the souls she sends here, and even telling one in his next life that she will expect an improvement when she sees him again - it's a remarkable and powerful scene, and I loved that little bit of her motherly side showing through an angel of death giving a soul another chance at redemption.

In a way, what she wants she just gave, and in this act she redeems herself in some small way.