# Character State: ch-09 (CANONICAL—POLISHED)

## Isabella Voss
**Location:** The Great Hall, Blackthorn Keep
**Physical:** Hemomantic exhaustion; fresh palm lacerations; visibly drained.
**Emotional:** Defiant; triumphant yet brittle; intoxicated by her own sovereignty claim.
**Active Obligations:**
- Nightbloom survivors protection (Ch-09) — UNPAID
- Life-debt to Damien Blackthorn (Ch-09) — UNPAID
**Open Loops:**
- Legitimacy of "Blood-Sovereignty" claim under Coven Law — UNRESOLVED
- Isabella's unmarked vessel trial status — UNRESOLVED
- Logistics of refugee safety under unrecognized sovereignty — UNRESOLVED
**Carried Secrets:**
- Scarring severity (Damien aware only)
- Blood-sharing circumvents treaty protections
- Can channel Nightbloom collective without Matriarch
**Arc Completion:** 85% — Transitioned from treaty pawn to autonomous usurper by forging her own blood-vow.
**Status:** Permanent protagonist

## Damien Blackthorn
**Location:** The Great Hall, Blackthorn Keep
**Physical:** Throat bruising; minor feedback lacerations; breathing heavy.
**Emotional:** Recklessly protective; awe-struck; fully committed to rebellion against his father.
**Active Obligations:**
- Isabella's protection (Ch-09) — UNPAID
- House Blackthorn succession (Ch-09) — UNPAID
**Open Loops:**
- Damien vs. Lord Malphas for Coven leadership — UNRESOLVED
- Soft war against House Blackthorn — ESCALATED to open defiance
**Carried Secrets:**
- Isabella's intentional bloodletting fuels her magic
- Will kill father to protect new union
**Arc Completion:** 80% — Abandoned familial loyalty to legitimize Isabella's rebellion.
**Status:** Permanent love interest/co-revolutionary

## Lord Malphas Blackthorn
**Location:** The High Dais, Blackthorn Keep
**Physical:** Uninjured; rigid with barely contained fury.
**Emotional:** Humiliated; calculating; murderous intent toward Isabella and Damien.
**Active Obligations:**
- Finalized Nightbloom annexation — STALLED indefinitely
**Open Loops:**
- Malphas vs. Isabella's "illegal magic" claim — UNRESOLVED
- Heresy trial retaliation plan — IN MOTION
**Carried Secrets:**
- Plans heresy trial to seize assets regardless of marriage outcome
**Arc Completion:** 75% — Control fractured; transitioned from puppet master to cornered predator.
**Status:** Primary antagonist; increasingly dangerous

# World State: ch-09 (CANONICAL—POLISHED)

## NPC Memory
- **High Priest Malakor:** COWED — Witnessed Isabella override the Great Binding ritual with unauthorized blood-oath. Religious authority fundamentally shaken.

## Faction Attitudes
- **Nightbloom Coven:** EMPOWERED — Re-anchored by Isabella's sovereignty declaration; morale restored but legal status precarious.
- **Blackthorn Coven:** FRACTURED — Rank-and-file split between Malphas's legalism and Damien's martial charisma; civil conflict imminent.

## Critical World Events
- **The Great Binding:** FAILED — Replaced by autonomous blood-covenant outside traditional ritual law.
- **Nightbloom Restoration:** INITIATED — Isabella invoked "Right of Blood-Sovereignty" to nullify annexation (legitimacy unproven in Coven Law).

## Unresolved Tensions (Ch-10 Catalysts)
1. Blood-sovereignty legitimacy vs. established Coven Law hierarchy
2. Malphas's retaliation via heresy trial (imminent threat)
3. Refugee logistics under unrecognized sovereignty status
4. Damien's divided loyalty (Isabella vs. House Blackthorn succession)
5. Isabella's unmarked vessel trial outcome (deferred, not resolved)

**Stakes Escalation:** Malphas moves from cornered to lethal; Isabella's victory is tactical, not strategic.