# Character State: ch-06

## Mira
Location: Imperial Palace, Grand Ballroom, Solstice Wing
Physical: No injuries; high autonomic arousal; feet aching from formal silk slippers.
Emotional: Professionally defiant but internally compromised; reeling from the "Harmonized Resonance" during the dance.
Active obligations: Owes the Emperor a public display of stability (Ch06) — PAID; Owes Dorian a response to his "unplanned" physical proximity (Ch06) — UNPAID.
Open loops: Mira/Dorian "Binary Star" public exposure (Ch06) — UNRESOLVED; Mira/Ministry "Inquisition Clause" threat (Ch06) — UNRESOLVED.
Known secrets: Realized Dorian’s ice doesn't just "neutralize" her fire, it "amplifies" the sensory clarity of her magic — The Ministry does not know.
Arc: 55% — Transitioned from a reluctant political partner to a somatic addict of their combined power.
Permanent: YES (First public manifestation of "Grey" mana during the Solstice Waltz; established the pair as a singular tactical threat to the Throne).

## Dorian Solas
Location: Imperial Palace, Grand Ballroom, Solstice Wing
Physical: Severe thermal flush; right hand "branded" by Mira’s kinetic heat; minor mana-depletion.
Emotional: Terrified by the breakdown of his "Absolute Zero" facade in front of the court; experiencing profound lingering attraction.
Active obligations: Owes the Emperor a technical report on the Starfall stabilization (Ch05) — UNPAID.
Open loops: Dorian/Mira somatic threshold limits (Ch02) — UNRESOLVED.
Known secrets: Knows the Emperor is using the "Gilded Gala" as a sensory stress test to break their tether — Mira does not know.
Arc: 60% — Formally abandoned the "Spire Protocols" of detachment to protect Mira’s reputation during the dance.
Permanent: YES (Publicly broke his traditional "Ice" silence to defend a "Pyre" mage; relationship status shifted to "United Front" in court records).

## Kaelen
Location: Ballroom Gallery, Oversight Station
Physical: No injuries.
Emotional: Simmering resentment; professional jealousy regarding the Chancellors’ "resonance."
Active obligations: Owes Mira a tally of Ministry spies present (Ch06) — PAID.
Open loops: Kaelen/Ministry "Correction" plotting (Ch05) — UNRESOLVED.
Known secrets: Witnessed the exact moment the Chancellors' mana merged into a "Grey" aurora — The General public missed the technical detail.
Arc: 20% — Shifted from suspicious observer to a potential defector, feeling "replaced" by the Chancellors' bond.
Permanent: NO

## The Emperor (Malchor)
Location: The Eternal Throne, Ballroom Dais
Physical: No injuries.
Emotional: Calculating and predatory; pleased by the "instability" demonstrated by the tether.
Active obligations: Owes the Chancellors a renewal of the Academy Charters (Ch06) — UNPAID.
Open loops: Emperor/Starfall Accord "Control Clause" (Ch01) — UNRESOLVED.
Known secrets: Intends to lead the "Grey" mana for his own kinetic batteries — The Chancellors do not know.
Arc: 10% — Transitioned from a distant ruler to an active saboteur of the Chancellors' autonomy.
Permanent: NO

# World State: ch-06

## NPC Memory
- High Nobility (Imperial Court): SHOCKED — Witnessed the "Binary Star" waltz — Increasing rumors that the Chancellors are "Soul-Bound" rather than just colleagues.

## Faction Attitudes
- The Imperial Ministry: HOSTILE/VIGILANT — View the Chancellors' resonance as a potential coup-level threat.
- Spire/Pyre Faculty: DIVIDED — Seeing their leaders unified is causing an identity crisis within the student ranks.

## Active World Events
- The Starfall Drift: Severe; the aurora is now visible in the Capital during the day.
- The Solstice Merger: Phase Two begins; the schools must now share a singular curriculum and mana-well.