Alex Goodwill

Angels aren't born they're made, crafted for a purpose by the gods who command them; and when those gods die their angels don't perish with them, they are left behind. They call it Transubstantiation, when an angel is ripped from the home their deity made for them and unceremoniously tossed into the prime material. Sadly most angels do not survive the transition from the celestial to the material, those who do find themselves struggling to live in an alien and unforgiving world.

This is how Alex first came to the prime material. Long ago he was a messenger angel for the Norse goddess of rain and storm, Aerdrie Faenya the Lady of Air and Wind, until the day she was felled by another god, Mask. The moment she died her realm was sundered, the heavens opened and her angels fell from the skies like hailstones. Alex was in the prime material when it happened, delivering a message that would never be received. He watched in horror as his brothers and sisters fell to earth, their wings unable to keep them aloft after the death of their goddess.

One of a handful of surviving angels, he aimlessly wandered the earth for centuries. He did his best to stay away from humans and civilization, suspecting them of somehow being the cause of Aerdrie's demise. That became impossible however as civilization grew and expanded. The world became smaller, magic dwindled, cities grew, and Alex found himself homeless on the streets of New York, begging for whatever people were willing to give.

Alex began to trade healing for booze, and in doing so became a minor celebrity for the magical community in NYC. The Alleyway Angel, some called him; for the price of a bottle he would remove curses, mend bones, and close wounds. It wasn't until autumn of 1995 that he would meet Jack Radigan and his life would finally take a turn for the better.

Jack was moving up in the world, he was coming into more and more work, which required more and more help. He expanded his private business to include a few more investigators and in doing so was in dire need of a secretary to help run things in the office and keep track of scheduling. He was on his way to interview someone for the position when he ran into Alex who was trying to wash his windshield at a red light. Where everyone else saw a worthless bum Jack could see through the glamour to the struggling angel with a chip on his shoulder. Jack offered Alex a job, and the rest is history, the two becoming close friends ever since.