# Character State: ch-15

## Isabella Voss
Location: Outskirts of the Nightbloom Wilds, makeshift medical camp
Physical: Scarred skin from hemomantic overexertion; partial deafness in right ear; recovering from magical exhaustion
Emotional: Melancholy but purposeful; grieving but free
Active obligations: Protection of Nightbloom survivors (ch-14) -- ACTIVE | Life-debt to Damien (ch-14) -- UNPAID
Open loops: Integration of the Nightbloom Collective into a new territory (ch-15) -- UNRESOLVED
Known secrets: CARRIED (ch-14--unresolved): Holds collective consciousness in marrow — Council unaware
Arc: 95% -- transitioned from a tool of the coven to the sovereign vessel of her people's future.
Permanent: YES

## Damien Blackthorn
Location: Outskirts of the Nightbloom Wilds, triage tent
Physical: Abdominal bandages soaked; stabilized but weak; permanent scarring on torso and arms
Emotional: Quietly triumphant; exhausted; deeply protective of Isabella
Active obligations: Protect Isabella from remaining Blackthorn loyalists (ch-15) -- ACTIVE
Open loops: Remaining Blackthorn Council members hunting for the "traitor" (ch-15) -- UNRESOLVED
Known secrets: None (Patricide intentions were made public by actions in ch-14).
Arc: 90% -- successfully pivoted from a weapon of tyranny to a guardian of the displaced.
Permanent: YES

## Lord Malphas Blackthorn
Location: Great Hall High Dais, Blackthorn Keep (Ruined)
Physical: Comatose; magical necrosis spreading through extremities
Emotional: Void
Active obligations: None
Open loops: Survival of the Blackthorn lineage (ch-14) -- UNRESOLVED (Magically sterile)
Known secrets: None
Arc: 100% -- rendered an inert relic of a discarded era.
Permanent: YES

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# World State: ch-15

## NPC Memory
- Kaelen (Nightbloom Refugee): Grateful -- Witnessed Isabella’s stand at the bridge -- Will follow her leadership without blood-oaths.
- Elder Thorne (Blackthorn Council): Vengeful -- Saw the collapse of the Keep's power -- Desires Isabella’s capture to restore the blood-tie.

## Faction Attitudes
- The Collective: Devoted -- They feel Isabella’s steadying presence in their minds -- High cohesion.
- Blackthorn Remnants: Chaotic -- Leaders are dead or catatonic; low-level knights are deserting or becoming bandits.

## Active World Events
- The Great Migration: The Nightbloom Collective is moving toward the Whispering Peaks; 2 weeks expected travel.
- The Wane: Magic tied to the Obsidian Bridge is flickering out globally; blood-vow strength is diminishing for those not in the Collective.

## Permanent World Changes
- ✓ Destruction of the Obsidian Bridge (Physical and Metaphysical).
- ✓ Dissolution of the Voss-Blackthorn Pact.
- ✓ Birth of the Unbound Magic (hemomancy without hierarchy).