staging: character-state-chapter-ref.md task=694d17f3-3c7d-45df-a7b7-38a4c7dfa3d9

projects/cypress-bend/staging/character-state-chapter-ref.md

@@ -1,43 +1,51 @@
 # Character State: Ch1
 
 ## Lena Duval
-Location: The Duval ancestral cabin, Cypress Bend bayou
-Physical: Feverish and exhausted; palm is raw and bleeding from a self-inflicted ritual cut.
-Emotional: Resentful but resigned; feeling trapped by the land's demands.
-Active obligations: owers Maribelle Duval a "tribute of blood and silence" (Ch1) -- UNPAID.
-Open loops: Lena and Maribelle regarding the "coming rot" in the cypress groves (Ch1) -- UNRESOLVED.
-Known secrets: knows she intentionally failed the city-bound bus ticket purchase to avoid the swamp's "pull" -- Jax Harlan does not know.
-Arc: 5% -- Lena accepts that her blood is tied to the swamp's health, momentarily abandoning her immediate plan to flee.
-Permanent: NO
+Location: The Duval home / Cypress Bend outskirts
+Physical: Fatigued; palm is pricked and bleeding from a blood-oath binding.
+Emotional: Resentful and trapped.
+Active obligations: 
+- owes Aunt Maribelle Duval her presence and obedience (Ch1) -- UNPAID
+Open loops: 
+- Lena and Maribelle [Future of the Duval lineage] (Ch1) -- UNRESOLVED
+Known secrets: 
+- knows she intends to leave Cypress Bend for the city -- Maribelle Duval (does not know the depth of Lena's desperation)
+Arc: 05% -- Lena has officially failed to transition away from the swamp, finding herself physically and magically re-bound to her aunt’s house.
+Permanent: YES
 
 ## Maribelle Duval
-Location: The Duval ancestral cabin porch, Cypress Bend
-Physical: Fragile appearance hiding predatory strength; no injuries.
-Emotional: Dominant and manipulative; satisfied by Lena's compliance.
-Active obligations: owes the swamp a "cleansing" to stop the blight (Ch1) -- UNPAID.
-Open loops: Maribelle and Lena regarding the grooming of Lena as the next Matriarch (Ch1) -- UNRESOLVED.
-Known secrets: knows the exact nature of Lena’s mother’s drowning ritual — Lena does not know.
-Arc: 2% -- Reasserts her control over the family line through mystical leverage.
-Permanent: NO
+Location: The Duval home porch
+Physical: Aging but steady; smells of pipe tobacco and stagnant water.
+Emotional: Triumphant and controlling.
+Active obligations: 
+- owes Lena a "place" in the coven hierarchy (Ch1) -- UNPAID
+Open loops: 
+- Maribelle and Lena [The Grooming of the Heir] (Ch1) -- UNRESOLVED
+Known secrets: 
+- knows the specifics of the ritual that claimed Lena's mother -- Lena (knows only the trauma, not the mechanical "why")
+Arc: 05% -- Successfully forced Lena to draw blood for a warding ritual, reasserting her dominance over her niece.
+Permanent: YES
 
 ## Jax Harlan
-Location: The "Mud-Skipper" airboat, docking at the Duval pier
-Physical: Sunburned and grease-stained hands; no injuries.
-Emotional: Guarded but observant; worried about Lena’s deteriorating condition.
-Active obligations: owes Lena a ride out of town "when the time is right" (Ch1) -- UNPAID.
-Open loops: Jax and Lena regarding the illegal dredging equipment he spotted near the groves (Ch1) -- UNRESOLVED.
-Known secrets: knows the developers are paying for his silence on bayou transit routes -- Lena does not know.
-Arc: 1% -- Establishes himself as Lena's tether to the outside world while deepening his ties to her secrets.
+Location: The docks / Swamp outskirts
+Physical: No injuries; hands grease-stained from boat engine work.
+Emotional: Guarded but curious.
+Active obligations: None.
+Open loops: 
+- Jax and Lena [Connection through the swamp run] (Ch1) -- UNRESOLVED
+Known secrets: 
+- knows the hidden channels through the Blackwood Thicket -- The Town Council
+Arc: 02% -- Established as the only person Lena treats with "raw honesty" outside of her family.
 Permanent: NO
 
 # World State: Ch1
 
 ## NPC Memory
-- Remy LeBlanc (Gumbo Shack): NEUTRAL -- Warning Lena about the "black-water rot" appearing in the fish harvest -- Lena is now alerted to the environmental threat.
+- Remy LeBlanc (Cypress Bend): Friendly -- Provided Lena with the necessary supplies (and gossip) for her failed departure -- Remains Lena’s primary source of non-magical information.
 
 ## Faction Attitudes
-- Swamp Witches (Duval Coven): Insular and demanding -- Focused on maintaining the "blood-oath" with the land at any cost.
-- Outside Developers: Aggressive but unseen -- Pushing boundaries into the protected cypress groves, causing mystical and physical rot.
+- Swamp Witches (Duval Coven): Insular and manipulative -- Seeking to retain their power by binding the younger generation to the land.
+- Outsiders/Developers: Encroaching -- Mentioned as a distant threat that justifies Maribelle's aggressive recruitment.
 
 ## Active World Events
-- The Blight: A mystical decay affecting the cypress roots and local wildlife; spreading from the southern bend toward the town center.
+- The Binding: Maribelle has initiated a series of blood-rituals to strengthen the town's perimeter against external "progress."