It's been a few days and Chaz hasn't returned. We began to worry about her, and The Prophet has decided to send Carolyn and I off to find her. Carolyn has healed- and although she is still bandaged and not completely recovered, she is well enough to travel without help from me.

I took her hand, entwining our fingers together as we stepped out into the barren desert, making our way to the city where Chaz grew up. It was a long walk- a few hours, but it was well worth it. Carolyn and I talked, laughed, I even heard her sing. She had a beautiful voice.

"Jake?"

"Yeah Carolyn?"

"I.... I remember why I was kicked out of heaven." She whispered at a barely audible volume. I squeezed her hand gently.

"Can you tell me?"

"I... it's.... it's because I broke the rules, and my human died." She said after a very long silence.

"What rules Carolyn? And what human are you talking about?"

"The biggest rule of our kind. Angels are not allowed to kill humans. Also, we are not allowed to show ourselves to humans." She mumbled, her head down watching her feet as she walked. I was confused, curious, and concerned.

"Carolyn, can you explain?" I asked her. She took a long shakey breath and nodded. I heard her gulp.

"Angels are allowed on earth- you know, just like you and The Wild Ones- we can't be seen yadda yadda yadda- except we CAN be seen IF we chose to show ourselves to humans. Only guardian angels are allowed on earth. If the person you're guarding dies unnaturally- you get kicked out of heaven because you did not guard them- because you failed."

"Is that why you allow the soldiers to see you? Because you're a fallen angel now?" She nodded solemnly. I wrapped an arm around her waist was we walked.

"When us Guardian Angels are on earth, it's very stressful. You see, angels can see one another, which means you can see who is who's Guardian Angel. That being said, since we're away from Heaven- we aren't... watched. It's as if some turn evil and greedy- as if they're becoming the humans they're guarding. There are angels who are cruel, and with no one enforcing the rules strictly, there is a lot of crime that the humans do not see. If the person you're guarding does something that hurts the person another is guarding... their angel could... could come and take your person's life- condemning you to a life on earth as a fallen." She whispered. I frowned, my heart dropping as if I knew what was about to come next.

"My person... she was... she was incredible. She was always sad, always empty- numb even... but she put herself aside and she tried her best to help others. She gave advice, and talked humans out of suicide. She was around 17 when she... when she died." Carolyn whispered, tears forming in her eyes. She sniffed and I wiped them away.

"You don't have to continue if you don't want to." I whispered. She frowned and shook her head.

"No... no it's fine." She muttered.

"Uhm... where was I? Oh yeah... she was 17 when she died. You see- she did give advice, and it was great. She helped SO many humans, but there were so many people that needed her help- it was impossible for her to help them all. There were so many letters and emails that went unanswered. It wasn't because she didn't care, it was just that she literally did not have enough time to respond to all of them. There was one person- a boy. He... he asked for her help a few times, and when he went unanswered- he committed suicide. His angel- in a rage, came to my human and I in the night- right before they kicked him out of Heaven. He attacked my human. He revealed himself to her, and I revealed myself- desperately hoping that she would feel some sense in comfort knowing that I was there to protect her." Her face grew pale, and she was covered with a clammy sweat. I frowned, but still curious listened on.

"He... he was attacking her and I didn't know what to do. I pulled him off, and I fought him. I don't know where he went- but I did scare him off. I looked around, and when he was gone I sighed in relief. When I turned around to my human, she was cowering, curled tightly in a ball. She was shaking, and she was bleeding. Her eyes were wide, her hair matted... there was so much blood I didn't know what to do. I walked over to her calmly and I showed her my hands. I told her I was not there to harm her, that I was her guardian. She kept quiet as I tried to heal her, bandaging her wounds and cleaning her up. I got her back in bed, and she looked up at me. 'I always knew you were there. I always knew it. I saw the signs. I always knew it.' She whispered to me... it shocked me, but I smiled at her, telling her I never once left her side. She flashed me a weak smile. 'Thank you for protecting me. I love you so much. You don't need to protect me anymore- it's okay.' she said in a hoarse and tired voice. My heart dropped and I didn't know what she meant by that. Before I got a chance to ask, she fell asleep. She died that night... peacefully in her sleep- the way she had always wanted to die. When the humans found her, they said it was self harm, that she was suicidal. It broke me."

"Carolyn... oh god, honey. I'm so sorry!" I didn't know what to say, I just hugged her tightly as we walked. She just looked down and nodded.

"It's fine... but uhm... since it was an incident where two angels showed themselves to a human, and an angel killed another angel's human it got a lot of attention... which meant I of course was kicked out of heaven, which was going to happen anyway since she... she died. I am afraid of where he is... I don't know whatever happened to the attacking angel. All I know is that he has to be a Fallen now, just like me. That means he's here, on earth... and knowing him, he's probably still looking for me." She whispered. I frowned and my eyes widened.

"Carolyn, he's not going to get you. The Wild Ones and I will NEVER let that happen. Maybe we'll take him out when we defeat F.E.A.R.?" I said, trying to make her feel better. She sighed, and smirked a bit.

"You're so sure you're going to defeat F.E.A.R. aren't you?" She whispered.

"Yes. I am sure. It's the only thing that I believe in. I refuse to even entertain the thought of defeat." I said confidently. She sighed and nodded.

"How you are so hopeful I don't know- but I do know that I like it. It gives me hope too." She whispered. I smiled, and looked down at her.

I brought my face to hers, and gently kissed her cheek.

That was the end of our journey in the desert. Next we had to find Chaz. Where on earth could she be?!

Notes

BUM BUM BUMMMM backstory for Carolyn :) A sad, tragic backstory- but at least some of the questions are answered.

What happened to the other Fallen that killed Carolyn's human?

Where on earth is Chaz and is she safe and okay?

-Ra