staging: character-state-chapter-ref.md task=15d22cea-fa66-4922-a60c-3e5dcc98f15e

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

@@ -1,50 +1,43 @@
-Since no narrative prose was provided in "Turn 2" (the user message provided only instructions and the project description without the actual Chapter story text), I cannot extract specific plot developments or physical states. Below is the extraction based on the character's baseline status as established in the provided character sheet and the implied starting state of the project.
-
-# Character State: Ch1
+# Character State: Ch1
 
 ## Lena Duval
-Location: Cypress Bend bayou (near the cypress groves)
-Physical: Slight fatigue from metabolic drain of magic; no physical injuries. 
-Emotional: Wary and protective; longing for life outside the swamp but tethered by duty.
-Active obligations: 
-- Owes the land/swamp blood and symbiosis (Ch1) -- UNPAID
-- Owes Aunt Maribelle Duval her presence as an apprentice (Ch1) -- UNPAID
-Open loops: 
-- Lena vs. Bayou Heritage (Ch1) -- UNRESOLVED
-- Lena vs. Developers (Ch1) -- UNRESOLVED
-Known secrets: 
-- Knows the truth of her mother's drowning ritual (Ch1) -- The town/coven does not know her exact trauma/blame level.
-- Knows Aunt Maribelle is grooming her for power against her will (Ch1) -- Outsiders do not know the extent of Maribelle's manipulation.
-Arc: 5% -- Baseline established: Lena is actively resisting her role as a swamp witch while being physically and spiritually bound to the land.
+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
 
-## Aunt Maribelle Duval
-Location: Duval residence/Coven grounds in Cypress Bend
-Physical: No injuries; aged but physically vitalized by magic.
-Emotional: Calculating and manipulative.
-Active obligations: 
-- Owes the Duval legacy a successor (Ch1) -- UNPAID
-Open loops: 
-- Maribelle vs. Lena's autonomy (Ch1) -- UNRESOLVED
-Known secrets: 
-- Knows the true price of the blood-oaths Lena must take (Ch1) -- Lena does not know the full cost.
-Arc: 0% -- Initial antagonistic stance maintained.
+## 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
+
+## 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.
 Permanent: NO
 
 # World State: Ch1
 
 ## NPC Memory
-- Aunt Maribelle Duval (Swamp Witch): Manipulative -- Intends to force Lena into the succession -- Lena is the only viable heir.
-- Remy LeBlanc (Informant): Friendly/Gossip -- Provides Lena with local news and gumbo -- Lena views him as a safe emotional harbor.
+- 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.
 
 ## Faction Attitudes
-- Bayou Witches: Divided -- Maribelle holds power, but the lineage requires Lena's blood-oaths to sustain the land's binding.
-- Developers: Encroaching -- Hostile intent toward the natural state of Cypress Bend for profit.
+- 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.
 
 ## Active World Events
-- The Thinning: The natural protection of the bayou is weakening as Lena refuses her role, allowing developers to move in closer.
-
-## Deceased Characters
-## Mother Duval -- DECEASED (Prior)
-Established: Drowned during a sacrificial ritual witnessed by Lena at age 12.
-Legacy: Her death created Lena’s trauma, her hatred of the "witch" title, and the silver locket Lena uses as a tactile grounding point.
+- The Blight: A mystical decay affecting the cypress roots and local wildlife; spreading from the southern bend toward the town center.