### 1. PROSE EVIDENCE

"Lena Duval no longer occupied the cramped, sweating space of a human skull. Her mind had frayed and woven itself into the black loam of the Siphon Hub..." (Early) - Excellent use of tactile imagery to establish the post-human shift from internal thought to external environmental consciousness.

"He was silver and shadow, a shape carved from the predatory history of the Bayou." (Mid) - Effectively reinforces Jax’s transformation into an apex protector through sharp, evocative metaphor.

"The manipulative fire that had once burned in her eyes had been replaced by a soft, rhythmic glow." (Mid) - Efficiently signals the completion of Aunt Maribelle's arc from antagonist to biological utility.

"The battery—a toxic little heart—was encased in a protective layer of rapid-growth calcium, neutralized and rendered inert..." (Late) - Demonstrates the "Biological Cathedral" world-state, showing how the swamp's directed evolution handles technological threats.

"Wait... no... no... no... no... no..." (Late) - This serves as the "imperfection signature" from the character sheet, effectively signaling a flash of distress or vestigial humanity.

---

### 2. CHARACTER VOICE AUDIT

**LENA DUVAL**
*Line:* "The cypress don't lie, cher—they are the only truth left."
*   **Signature Vocabulary/Tics:** YES. Uses "Gator's truth" (internal thought) and "cher."
*   **Avoid Forbidden Speech:** YES. She does not say "I give up" or offer preemptive apologies.
*   **Emotional Register:** YES. She reflects the "transcendent serenity" and "ego dissolved" states described in the RAG.

**JAX HARLAN**
*Line:* "Close it."
*   **Signature Vocabulary/Tics:** N/A (Dialogue is minimal for his "inhuman focus").
*   **Avoid Forbidden Speech:** YES. Consistent with his predatory, silent nature.
*   **Emotional Register:** YES. Reflects "soul-bound devotion" to the borders.

**REMY LEBLANC**
*Line:* "But the swamp don't fear fire, cher. It just waits for the ashes to cool so it can feed."
*   **Signature Vocabulary/Tics:** YES. Uses "cher." Consistent as a "nostalgic historian."
*   **Avoid Forbidden Speech:** YES.
*   **Emotional Register:** YES. Consistent with "peaceful resignation."

---

### 3. STRENGTHS TO PRESERVE

*   **Environmental Mechanics:** The description of the "Great Silence" as a "5-mile EM dead zone" (Mid) and the "Cymatics of the soul" (Early) grounds the magical realism in a specific, pseudo-scientific reality that matches the project's "conscious machine" theme.
*   **Character Arc Integration:** The transformation of Maribelle into a "vital filtration organ" (Mid) provides a dark but narratively satisfying resolution to her "Redemption via utility" arc.
*   **The Drone Sequence:** The way the swamp handles the drone—"The mud simply opened. The silt swallowed the plastic and the metal" (Late)—perfectly illustrates the "Humanity/TDC: REJECTED" world state without relying on a cliché explosive battle.

---

### 4. MUST-FIX -- CONTINUITY

*   **ORIGINAL:** "Wait... no... no... no... no... no..."
*   **PROBLEM:** While this matches the "Imperfection signature" for panic/panic, the RAG states Lena's emotional state is now "transcendent serenity; ego dissolved." Having her experience a "fleeting second of the old world's desperation" is fine, but the *voice* of the panic needs to be clearly attributed to the vestigial "Lena" part of the "We" rather than a breakdown of the deity-form.
*   **FIX:** Add a subtle framing to emphasize this is a residual human echo. "A phantom pulse—the old Lena, the one who lived in a skull—gasped. *Wait... no... no... no... no... no...*"

---

### 5. MUST-FIX -- CLARITY

*   **ORIGINAL:** " Jax closed his eyes, feeling the Hum through the soles of his feet. He felt Lena’s presence—not as a woman he had once held, but as the constant, grounding pressure of the world around him."
*   **PROBLEM:** This creates a slight logic gap regarding Jax's location. The RAG places him at "The Shallows (Perimeter)" whereas the Siphon Hub/Heart Tree is the "Core." If he is 5 miles away, the "Hum" needs to be explicitly defined as travelling through the root network to his feet for the reader to understand the connection.
*   **FIX:** Clarify the medium of connection. "Jax closed his eyes, feeling the Hum vibrate up from the deep-tap roots through the soles of his feet."

---

### 6. OPTIONAL SUGGESTIONS

*   **OPTIONAL:** Regarding the phrase "Aunt Maribelle Duval had found her final utility" (Mid).
    *   **Reason:** Since Lena is now "The We," the third-person narrative occasionally slips into a distant observer tone. Strengthening the biological connection here would emphasize the Hive Mind.
    *   **Quote to modify:** "They circled the filtration basin where Aunt Maribelle Duval had found her final utility." -> "They circled the filtration basin where our Aunt Maribelle hummed as a vital valve, her utility finally absolute."

---

### 7. FORBIDDEN CHANGES / NON-GOALS

*   **Verbal Tics:** Do NOT change "Gator's truth" or "cher." These are core to the voice signature.
*   **Non-standard Grammar:** Do NOT correct "the swamp don't lie" or "the swamp don't fear fire." This clipped, rhythmic bayou-chant style is intentional.
*   **The Ending:** The finality of "Cypress Bend bent for no one ever again" is a structural choice for the "Permanent: YES" state of the characters and should not be softened to allow for "sequel bait."

---

### 8. VERDICT: PASS

**SCORE: 93**
The chapter brilliantly executes the "Apotheosis" state described in the RAG context, maintaining strict adherence to character voice signatures (specifically Lena’s tics and Remy’s historian role). A minor tweak to the framing of the "panic" thought and the grounding of Jax's sensory connection are suggested, but the overall craft and thematic consistency are excellent.