### 1. PROSE EVIDENCE
*   **Quote 1 (Early):** "In the Inner Sanctum, the air did not behave like air; it had the viscosity of cool spring water, thick with the scent of crushed needles and ancient, drying loam."
    *   *Commentary:* This effectively establishes the otherworldly, tactile nature of the Sanctum while maintaining the forest-based sensory palette of the series.
*   **Quote 2 (Mid):** "Ten feet away, Thorne Blackroot moved like a shadow cast by a dying flame."
    *   *Commentary:* This simile captures Thorne’s weakened state while reinforcing his faction’s association with darkness and corruption.
*   **Quote 3 (Late):** "Thorne’s body jerked, his blackened veins glowing with a blinding, terrifying white."
    *   *Commentary:* The visual contrast of the "blackened veins" versus "terrifying white" provides a visceral sense of the ritual’s purging mechanics.

---

### 2. CHARACTER VOICE AUDIT

**ELARA VANCE**
*   **Dialogue Quote:** "I... I flow... no, I mean falter."
*   **Signature Vocabulary/Tics:** YES ("By the roots", "The falls whisper what the roots already know", water-related metaphors).
*   **Forbidden Patterns:** YES (Avoids slang/idioms).
*   **Emotional Register:** YES (Reflects her 95% arc completion—transcendent yet spiritually depleted).

**THORNE BLACKROOT**
*   **Dialogue Quote:** "Hark, can you hear it? Your life-blood is merely fertilizer for the true master of this wood."
*   **Signature Vocabulary/Tics:** YES (Uses "the roots remember," "hark," and "rend your bones").
*   **Forbidden Patterns:** YES (No apologies or vulnerability expressed).
*   **Emotional Register:** YES (Consistent with his "existential terror" arc position).

---

### 3. STRENGTHS TO PRESERVE
*   **Vessel Imperfection:** The specific stammering "I... I flow... no, I mean falter" (Early) is a critical adherence to the character sheet’s "Imperfection signature" for when Elara is spiritually drained.
*   **The Symbolic Burden:** Elara’s habit of "Unconsciously traces the faint glow of the Sigil on her palm... wincing if it brushes her bruised ribs" (Late) maintains physical continuity of her injuries and her tactile grounding method.
*   **Kaelen’s Martyrdom:** The description of Kaelen as "a pillar of salt and iron" (Mid) perfectly encapsulates his "Grim peace" and role as the selfless protector.

---

### 4. MUST-FIX -- CONTINUITY
*   **ORIGINAL:** "The Sunstone Shard... its remaining light has been spent." (RAG Context) vs. "He was a dying man holding a ghost of a star... Thorne’s hand closed around the Sunstone Shard..." (Chapter Text).
*   **PROBLEM:** The world state RAG entry says the Sunstone Shard was "SHATTERED" and "SPENT" to ground the threshold *at the start* of the chapter context. However, the chapter narrative has it physically intact for Thorne to grab and Kaelen to slam into the ground.
*   **FIX:** Adjust the chapter text to reflect that Kaelen is holding the *fragments* or the *pulsing remains* of the shattered shard. Revised sentence: "He gripped the jagged remains of the Sunstone Shard in his right hand..."

---

### 5. MUST-FIX -- CLARITY
*   **ORIGINAL:** "Thorne’s body hit the stone floor with a hollow thud... he lay there, a broken thing... Thorne had crawled away, a trail of blackened ichor leading into the shadows." (Late)
*   **PROBLEM:** The proximity and timing are confusing. Thorne is described as falling with a "hollow thud" and losing his connection to the Blight, implying he is incapacitated. Moments later, after Elara stands and walks to the threshold, he has already "crawled away." This transition happens off-page too quickly for a character described as having their power "devoured."
*   **FIX:** Add a brief beat of Elara sensing his retreat. Change to: "Elara watched as Thorne, now a hollowed husk of a man, dragged himself into the shadows of the outer grove, leaving a trail of blackened ichor."

---

### 6. OPTIONAL SUGGESTIONS
*   **Suggestion (Late):** "The forest doesn't cry for the falling leaf; it simply prepares the soil."
    *   *Improvement:* This is a strong thematic line, but could be even more anchored in the "Heavy Silence" mentioned in the NPCs section. Perhaps: "The Heavy Silence did not permit a cry for the falling leaf; it simply prepared the soil."

---

### 7. FORBIDDEN CHANGES / NON-GOALS
*   **Do Not Change:** Elara’s water-related stammers (e.g., "I flow... I mean falter"). These are intentional character sheet requirements for her "spiritually drained" state.
*   **Do Not Change:** Thorne’s elaborate, villainous metaphors. These are his defined voice signature even when he is dying.
*   **Do Not Change:** The "rhythmic" and "fragmented" sentence patterns in Elara’s internal monologue; they reflect the "measured" versus "depleted" state in her voice profile.

---

### 8. VERDICT
**VERDICT: REVISE**
**SCORE: 88**
**JUSTIFICATION:** The chapter is emotionally resonant and adheres strictly to voice signatures. However, there is a minor continuity clash regarding the Sunstone Shard's state (Intact vs. Shattered) and a pacing issue regarding Thorne's sudden disappearance after his defeat that requires a small narrative bridge.