Candle Face's Lost Souls Need Guardians Before It's Too Late
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Time to read 3 min
This entry breaks my silence after February 23. Since then, I've been going through Mr. Smoe's papers and merging my two websites into branchingplotbooks.com, which cost me the old blog comments and read counts. The lost souls still haven't come back since January, and I suspect the Master Shadow silenced them. The 31 Fugitives, now sealed in scrolls, still need protection. I'm calling on Guardians who will keep their voices alive until we find a way to set them free.
April 9, 2025
Main Subject: Candle Face
It's been a while since my last entry, since February 23, to be exact. I didn't mean to go quiet, especially not with everything that's at stake, but I needed to shift focus. I never stepped away from the mission. I was building something that could actually support it.
Since my last update, I've been going through Mr. Smoe's papers, sorting what he left behind. That included boxes of scrolls I found in his attic, each one holding the voice of someone who was erased. I also made a major decision during that time. I merged my two websites, and Candle Face Chronicles, into one home at www.branchingplotbooks.com. I had originally separated them to keep my traditional writing projects apart from the Candle Face Chronicles, which felt darker, messier, and more personal. But the longer this has gone on, the more I've realized they were never truly separate. The work I've done through Branching Plot Books (the stories, the books, and the interactive experiences) was always about letting readers shape the story. Candle Face Chronicles may have started as something more evil and more personal, but it asks the same thing: for people to look closer, to interpret what they're seeing, and to decide for themselves what's real. So I brought it all together, hoping it would give the mission a stronger foundation. The site is live now. Everything I've written and everything Candle Face has forced into motion is there.
One drawback to moving the journal is that I lost all the previous blog comments and read counts. That stings a little. Still, it felt like the right move, even if it meant starting over.
But one thing hasn't changed since January.
The lost souls haven't come back.
I don't know why for sure, but I think the Master Shadow may have stopped them, because they were distracting him while the Fugitives escaped. I can only imagine the pain and torture they're enduring right now in Candle Face's Lair. Whatever the reason, their silence forced me to listen to someone else: the Fugitives.
These 31 lost souls managed to flee Candle Face's Lair. I've written about them before. I said I had to act fast to protect them. I said I would scatter them across the country to make them nearly impossible to find. And I meant it. But I couldn't send them off blindly. Not to just anyone.
These souls are still being hunted. The Master Shadow knows they're out there, but because their energy is contained in the scrolls, he'll never find them, as long as their stories stay alive. So I've been searching for Guardians. People who understand the risk. People willing to step into a role of paranormal protection. People who will protect these souls by sharing their voices, asking questions, and keeping their stories alive until we can figure out a permanent way to set them free.
The foundation is in place: books published, stories told, the website built. It's time to move.
I'm calling on the Guardians.
If you think you're one of them, reach out. But understand this: a Fugitive isn't a collectible, a game, or paranormal entertainment. Taking one in is a commitment. These souls need protection, and they're trusting me to find the right people. If you're reading this and you feel like this message was meant for you, it probably was.
If you're serious about becoming a Guardian, read the next journal entry. It's about what happens after you take in a scroll.
Arthur Mills
Arthur Mills served for more than two decades as an Army Intelligence Warrant Officer, specializing in piecing together what others missed: patterns, threats, enemy intent, and clandestine activity. He trained intelligence professionals, built threat models, and briefed commanders and world leaders on global threats and battlefield strategy. After retiring from the military, he moved into private investigation, focusing on missing persons, human trafficking, opposition research, and domestic terrorism. He holds a degree in Counter Terrorism Studies.
He has been writing books since 2006 and is an award-winning author. He publishes under his own name, though much of what he has written has appeared under pseudonyms. Readers may already know those titles without knowing they are his. The separation is intentional. His books invite readers to interpret what is hidden, and so does the way he publishes them.