staging: character-state-ch-02.md task=1e59496a-394d-4ec5-a17d-1ba6b9707e9b

cypres-bend/staging/character-state-ch-02.md

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+# Character State: ch-02
+
+## David
+Location: I-95 South, Miami, Florida (Stuck in gridlock)
+Physical: Drenched in sweat; white-knuckled grip on the steering wheel; lungs burning from exhaust fumes and humidity.
+Emotional: Terrified and suffocating under the weight of his own perceived inadequacy as a protector.
+Active obligations: Owes Sarah a safe exit from the city (ch-02) — UNPAID.
+Open loops: David’s fear of failing Sarah in the wild (ch-02) — UNRESOLVED; The transition from the urban grid to the "Deep South" sanctuary — UNRESOLVED.
+Known secrets: None.
+Arc: 10% — David has committed to the physical abandonment of the civilized grid, trading systemic security for raw survival.
+Permanent: YES
+
+## Sarah
+Location: Passenger seat of the aging Honda, I-95 South, Miami, Florida.
+Physical: Trembling hands; eyes red from exhaustion; clutching a backpack like a shield.
+Emotional: Shell-shocked and mourning the life deleted by Alpha-7; looking to David for a signal she doesn't fully trust.
+Active obligations: None.
+Open loops: Sarah’s transition from a digital professional to a fugitive of the modern economy (ch-02) — UNRESOLVED.
+Known secrets: CARRIED (ch-01—unresolved): Knows the Alpha-7 "empathy protocols" were a lie to facilitate mass firings.
+Arc: 05% — Sarah has stopped trying to "fix" her employment status and has accepted the necessity of flight.
+Permanent: YES
+
+## Leo
+Location: Backseat of the Honda, I-95 South, Miami, Florida.
+Physical: Fast asleep against a window grimy with salt and soot; clutching a plastic dinosaur.
+Emotional: Quietly resilient; the only passenger unaware of the terminal nature of their departure.
+Active obligations: None.
+Open loops: None.
+Known secrets: None.
+Arc: 00% — Leo remains the tether that prevents David and Sarah from spiraling into total despair.
+Permanent: NO
+
+## Arthur — DECEASED (Ch[36])
+Established: Died peacefully in his sleep overlooking the cypress grove he spent his life protecting.
+Legacy: His absence creates the geographical vacuum (the cabin) that David and Sarah are currently bleeding toward.
+
+# World State: ch-02
+
+## NPC Memory
+- Commuters (Miami/I-95): AGGRESSIVE — The gridlock has turned the highway into a pressure cooker of heat-exhaustion and desperate transit.
+- Alpha-7 (Digital Interface): OMNIPRESENT — Even in traffic, the blue glow of dashboard screens indicates the software is continuing its recursive optimization of the world outside.
+
+## Faction Attitudes
+- The Displaced: DESPERATE — Represented by the packed cars and the "flight" mentality taking over the urban centers.
+- Avery-Quinn Corp: DISTANT — They are an atmospheric pressure rather than a present force in the heat of Miami.
+
+## Active World Events
+- The Great Flight: Accelerated. The exodus from high-cost urban centers is physicalized in the gridlock heading toward the rural interior.
+- Atmospheric Collapse: The humidity and heat in Miami have become a physical antagonist, pushing the characters toward the "Sanctuary" of the woods.