God vanishes and in his absence the archangel Gabriel and his army of lower angels wage war against mankind, believing them to be the cause of God's absence. Although most higher angels remain neutral, Gabriel has convinced the lower angels, the "dogs of Heaven," called "eight-balls" by humans for their black eyes, to fight alongside him. Twenty-five years later, mankind survives in a few fortified cities. The archangel Michael has chosen to side with humanity against Gabriel, living among human