Butterfly effect: Kaelen death cascade (chapter-ch-06.md)

the-starfall-accord/staging/chapter-ch-06.md

@@ -130,4 +130,11 @@ We pulled apart, gasping, our breaths misting in the air. The silver glow linger
 
 Dorian looked at the heavy obsidian door at the end of the hall, then back at me. He reached out, his hand finding the small of my back, drawing me into a silent, lethal pact. "Then we don't do it alone. We take the Library. We take the evidence. And then we show the Council exactly what happens when you try to extinguish a star."
 
-Mira gripped the charred scroll, the Council’s seal crumbling under her thumb. "They didn't want us to lead together, Dorian," she whispered, looking into the eyes of the man she was supposed to hate. "They wanted us to burn out."
+Mira gripped the charred scroll, the Council’s seal crumbling under her thumb. "They didn't want us to lead together, Dorian," she whispered, looking into the eyes of the man she was supposed to hate. "They wanted us to burn out."
+---
+## AUTHOR DIRECTION — BUTTERFLY EFFECT CASCADE (Ch06)
+Kaelen's death is now 2 chapters in the past. The grief has hardened into resolve.
+- The Gilded Gala (or relevant event) is colored by the absence of Kaelen — Mira notices the empty spot where he would have stood.
+- Aric has been formally appointed Acting Proctor but is barely holding the fire students together.
+- If the Ministry tries to remove Mira, she can no longer call on Kaelen. She has only Dorian.
+- Remove any reference to Kaelen being active. If he is mentioned, it is as the dead.