# CHAPTER POLISH EXTRACTION — "Whispers in the Dark" Ch-18
## CANONICAL STATE (Post-Polish)

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## CHARACTER STATE

### Elias Thorne
- **Location:** Archive Sub-Level 4, Signal Transmission Chamber
- **Physical:** Severe exhaustion; bleeding from ears/nose (acoustic pressure); partial hearing loss; consciousness status AMBIGUOUS post-server overload
- **Emotional:** Transcendent but grieving; hollow victory
- **Arc:** 100% — Transitioned from investigator to physical conduit that silenced the broadcast
- **Active Obligations:** Sarah Miller (explanation owed re: signal) — SATISFIED (Ch-17)
- **Open Loops:** [Elias & Signal] Consciousness fate after server surge — **UNRESOLVED**
- **Secrets Carried:** Signal mimics voices of the dead (Sarah knows) — **UNRESOLVED in mechanism**
- **Status:** PERMANENT; fate ambiguous heading into Ch-19

### Sarah Miller
- **Location:** Archive Sub-Level 4, Security Monitoring Hub / Maintenance Access
- **Physical:** Migraine subsided to dull ache; forearm bruising (server bracing); exhaustion visible
- **Emotional:** Devastated; reconciling rationalism with witnessed supernatural sacrifice
- **Arc:** 95% — Surrendered to supernatural reality; mission prioritized over safety/logic
- **Active Obligations:** Backup extraction route for Elias — **FAILED** (terminal destroyed)
- **Open Loops:** [Sarah & Archive] Surviving facility collapse/containment — **UNRESOLVED**
- **Secrets Carried:** Archive security sabotaged internally (Elias responsible) — **UNRESOLVED identity of full sabotage chain**
- **Status:** PERMANENT; fate unresolved; survival contingent on facility escape

### The Curator
- **Location:** Administrative Level (off-screen)
- **Status:** NO arc progress; remains antagonistic shadow
- **Open Loops:** [Curator & Sabotage] Role in internal security override — **UNRESOLVED**
- **Permanent:** NO (may be expendable/revelatory in later chapters)

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## WORLD STATE

- **The Terminal Broadcast:** SILENCED — Countdown reached zero as Elias initiated feedback loop; primary transmitter destroyed
- **The Whispers (High-Frequency Entities):** TEMPORARILY SILENCED — Hostile possession attempt thwarted; dormancy status unknown
- **The Archive (Oakhaven):** HARD LOCKDOWN — Self-destruction/containment protocols triggered; Sub-Level 4 structural collapse active
- **Active Crisis:** Facility collapse in progress; fire suppression and containment locks engaging
- **Faction Status:** Archive operational authority compromised; sabotage origin unconfirmed

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## CRITICAL UNRESOLVED THREADS FOR Ch-19
1. Elias's consciousness survival / recovery
2. Sarah's extraction and survival
3. Full sabotage chain identity (Curator involvement unconfirmed)
4. Signal mechanism (mimicry of dead voices) — underlying logic/origin
5. Whisper dormancy duration and reactivation risk