**TO:** Editorial Board, Crimson Leaf Publishing
**FROM:** Cora, Continuity & Accuracy Editor
**SUBJECT:** Editorial Review: Cypress Bend, Chapter 17 – "The Crucible"

### 1. STRENGTHS TO PRESERVE
*   **Voice Signature Consistency (Marcus):** The use of diagnostic language ("Tachycardia," "High-alpha torque," "Peripheral breach") remains perfectly aligned with the Ch-01 and Ch-13 profile. The rhythmic four-beat tap is utilized correctly as a grounding mechanism.
*   **Voice Signature Consistency (Sarah):** Her use of "Error 404" and "Status is critical" in moments of high stress is consistent with her profile as a former logistics professional who has "weaponized detachment" (established Ch-01).
*   **Tactile Grounding:** The description of the 1994 JD-series excavator as "a brutalist monument of yellow iron and weeping seals" fits the world state established in Ch-16 regarding the Vance legacy tech.
*   **Character Voice Differentiation:** **YES.** Marcus (technical/systemic), Elena (directional/abrasive), and David (colloquial/physical) are clearly distinguishable by dialogue structure alone.

### 2. MUST-FIX — CONTINUITY
*   **CRITICAL FAULT: Character Status Inconsistency (Arthur Silas Vance).** 
    *   **The Draft says:** "I stared at the receiver in the kitchen of Arthur’s cabin... Elena’s voice was a serrated blade... 'Marcus.'" (Lines 2-5).
    *   **The Project Context (Character State: ch-17) established:** Arthur Silas Vance is **DECEASED (Ch-36/Ch-01)**. 
    *   **The Conflict:** While the draft correctly implies he is gone ("Arthur’s legacy," "Arthur’s cabin"), North-by-Northwest/Directional dialogue is explicitly his verbal tic. 
    *   **Correction:** Ensure Elena is not mimicking Arthur’s cardinal direction tic unless explicitly stated she is doing so to honor him.
*   **FATAL CONTRADICTION: Character Status (David).**
    *   **The Draft says:** "David reached out... 'We’re buildin' a bridge, son. A real one.'" (Lines 87-92).
    *   **The Project Context (Character State: ch-17) established:** David has **"Crushed ribs (suspected); severe bruising; exhaustion."**
    *   **The Conflict:** In the draft, David is pinned by a "three-ton oak king-post" (Line 59) and then pulled out by Sarah. He then immediately grips Marcus’s forearm and speaks clearly.
    *   **Correction:** David’s physical state in the character sheet (crushed ribs) makes his ability to speak clearly and grip Marcus's arm highly improbable. The draft must reflect the "crushed ribs" established in the context, rather than just a "bruised" leg.
*   **TIMELINE/TECH INCONSISTENCY:**
    *   **The Draft says:** "A Raven drone—an Avery-Quinn 'Skylark' model... indexing the heat from the overworked... engine." (Line 98).
    *   **The Project Context (World State: ch-17) established:** The **Great Dark** is ongoing—grid instability is masking construction noise.
    *   **The Conflict:** If the Great Dark is sufficient to mask noise, the thermal bloom of a 1994 engine would be an extreme delta.
    *   **Correction:** Explicitly mention how the engine heat violates the "unindexed noise" threshold mentioned in the World State NPC Memory.

### 3. MUST-FIX — CLARITY
*   **Physical Logic: The King-Post Pin.**
    *   **Passage:** "The oak post surged forward... and pinned his left leg into the anaerobic muck." (Line 60).
    *   **The Issue:** If a three-ton oak post pins a leg into "anaerobic muck" (which is effectively liquid/soft silt), the leg would either be severed or the post would sink. 
    *   **Fix:** Specifically mention the "limestone shelf" (which is mentioned in line 68) as the hard surface David’s leg was pinned against, or clarify that the muck's density saved the limb from being crushed instantly.

### 4. OPTIONAL SUGGESTIONS
*   **Optional:** The transition from the "dial-tone" in the kitchen to the riverbank happens very quickly. Adding one sentence about the physical distance walked would ground the "North-by-Northwest" orientation Elena provides.
*   **Optional:** Mention the "Alpha-7 back-end logs" (established in Ch-13 as being in Marcus's pocket) earlier in the chapter to heighten the tension when he is in the mud.

### 5. FORBIDDEN CHANGES / NON-GOALS
*   **Do NOT** remove David's dropped 'g's (e.g., "riggin'," "hopin'"). This is his established regression under stress/fatigue.
*   **Do NOT** normalize Sarah’s "Error 404" dialogue. This is her established trauma signature.
*   **Do NOT** make the track hoe operation "smooth." The "obsolete logic" and "weeping seals" are essential to the Vance legacy theme.

### 6. VERDICT
**REVISE.** 
The contradiction regarding David's physical injuries (Crushed ribs vs. Bruised leg) and the misuse of Arthur’s directional verbal tics by Elena creates a drift from the established canon. Continuity on David’s injuries is essential for the "Great Hunger/Caloric Deficit" arc established in the project context.