The Great Angelic War

Michel was not created to be a leader. Nevertheless, the first thing anyone would tell you about Michel is that he is the skilled general of the angelic army, a merciless warrior whose heart was hardened by centuries of battle.

Let’s start by the very beginning. Originally created by God (aka Lady Lumirel) to be the archangel of weather and harvest, Michel's destiny was to take care of the well-being and primary needs of humans. While powerful, he was far from being as popular as he is now, and had always been characterised by his selfless dedication to Lady Lumirel. Even now, he mainly thinks of himself as a tool of God and is content being one.

When Michel’s brother Heylel rebelled against his creator, Michel could not just stand and watch. He had to protect his princess and his whole homeland from Heylel’s prideful rage. So began the Great Angelic War.

Michel became the de facto army general of Heaven, because no other archangel felt like taking on this role. After all, Lumirel would have never expected that one of Her creations would rebel and that war would break out in Her peaceful paradise, so no archangel was designed to be a warrior. But while leading the army was not what Michel was designed to do, doing so surely did awaken something in him. Fighting for what was right was what he was meant to do.

More of a strategist than a believer in raw strength, but still a skilled swordsman, Michel won the war that many angels remember now as the grimmest time of their existence.

Now that dust has settled and that Michel has proved himself, he still strives to get stronger every day. If Heylel comes back, Michel must be ready to defend Lady Lumirel and all of Heaven. He always has his sword with him, although whether he actually uses it or not is often another story. It is actually more of a tool of dissuasion than anything, as his mere presence tends to scare enemies away.

Public life

But it would be a mistake to think that Michel's only task is to be a warrior and protector. His selfless dedication to his duties made him an overachiever who is unable to decline any mission Lady Lumirel gives him. He is Her most trusted archangel, after all.

When he is not busy fending off demons or thwarting their plans, Michel still has plenty of princely tasks to do, from boring paperwork to acting as the chief judge of the Court of Heaven. The full record of his tasks would be too long to list them all, but if you have to remember something: Michel is important and you better respect him.

Because of the central role he played in the war and his reputation of being a noble-hearted and courageous prince, he is seen as a hero and a role model by many angels, who closely study his actions to emulate him. Michel being the symbolic ruling figure instead of God, who prefers to stay hidden, he is a prominent political figure. While he is modest and is not the type to flaunt his power, Michel is much more gentle and approachable with humans than he is with his fellow angels.

Still, Prince Michel's popularity is not perfect. Heaven being a monarchy and angels being immortal, he has been the head of his homeland for a long, long time: billions of years to be exact. A few angels have got very critical of the government over time and now wish for a change, and Michel is obviously the first target of their anger. In addition, the most politically engaged angels tend to be fond of caricatures of Michel as well as written satire about him, whether they see it as a simple distraction from reality, or a serious mean of revolution.

Michel himself is strongly opposed to the idea of revolution and, while he is merciful towards humans, he is merciless to demons and revolted angels. According to him, all of those who knowledgeably defy God's authority and orders should be punished; mortals do not fall into the equation, as they do not have a direct contact with the divine, which makes their ignorance forgivable.

Humbled by the overwhelming respect he gets from humans who never saw him, Michel thinks of them as precious but fragile creatures who deserve nothing but protection and patience. It is only natural that his respect for God led him to respect Her favourite creations. He often offers ideas to help them connect with Heaven and make their lives easier.

Private life

Prince Michel’s private life is a mystery to most.

According to his brother Raphaël, whom he often confides in, Michel cares a lot about everyone, even though he has trouble expressing it. While he is content with his duties as the leader of the archangels, he finds it difficult to open his heart and connect with others, knowing how one could try to take advantage of him. He is also a perfectionist to a fault, despite his calm and level-headed exterior.

Lumirel's plans originally made him a female archangel, but Michel manifested his discomfort with it pretty early in his existence. That does not mean he did not have trouble to accept it at first. It was actually quite the opposite: he feared that transitioning would mean betraying Lumirel and Her intended path for him. Nobody before him had ever done that. Was it even possible?

Yet, as time went on, trying to ignore his feelings about the matter was making him miserable, to the point he was unable to perform his duties properly. For his own survival, he had no choice but to gather his courage and make his creator aware of his true identity. Michel transitioned long before the war, and most angels have no memory of him ever presenting as female – also facilitated by the fact that he rarely found the strength to make public apparitions as a princess.

Anxious at the idea of people finding out about his transness, Michel tends to overperform masculinity and repress some of his tastes and soft and sensitive side. He often fears that people will think he is not manly enough for his role as a powerful figure and unworthy of it. Feeling stuck in a constant battle to prove himself, his only source of comfort when his insecurities get the most of him is his brother Gabriel, who realised he was not a girl either a bit later.

There is a very soft spot in Michel’s heart for the inhabitants of Normandy. When he feels overwhelmed by his heavenly duties, his favourite earthly place to find solace in is the Mont-Saint-Michel. The biscuits you can buy there are just so good! As opposed to Raphaël, he does not have a developed human identity, and prefers to roam around in his invisible angelic form. His strong aura can easily be perceived whenever he is visiting. Sometimes, his brothers come along, but he prefers to be on his own most of the time.