From a48234f23ebc27f396fe6346a8f6520afc5e6ce1 Mon Sep 17 00:00:00 2001 From: PAE Date: Sat, 18 Apr 2026 01:21:59 +0000 Subject: [PATCH] staging: character-state-ch-05.md task=337c21fb-2dc1-4d7e-ac46-2934e00ebb8f --- .../staging/character-state-ch-05.md | 45 +++++++------------ 1 file changed, 17 insertions(+), 28 deletions(-) diff --git a/projects/cypress-bend/staging/character-state-ch-05.md b/projects/cypress-bend/staging/character-state-ch-05.md index 6710af06..9671b8fd 100644 --- a/projects/cypress-bend/staging/character-state-ch-05.md +++ b/projects/cypress-bend/staging/character-state-ch-05.md @@ -1,9 +1,9 @@ # Character State: ch-05 ## Lena Duval -Location: A safehouse apartment above a jazz club, French Quarter, New Orleans. -Physical: Fever broken but weak; faint scarring on right palm; phantom "tug" in her chest. -Emotional: Isolated and unmoored; experiencing the "hollow" of being disconnected from the swamp. +Location: A dingy safehouse apartment, Lower Ninth Ward, New Orleans. +Physical: Severe magical withdrawal; tremors in both hands; deathly pale; phantom pains where the "link" was severed. +Emotional: Isolated and unmoored; experiencing profound grief for the lost connection to the land. Active obligations: - Owes the land a "balancing of scales" (Ch1) -- UNPAID - Owes Jax Harlan a conversation about the "unnatural" events (Ch2) -- UNPAID @@ -16,45 +16,34 @@ Known secrets: - CARRIED (Ch1--unresolved): Knows she intends to flee to New Orleans within the week -- Aunt Maribelle does not know. - CARRIED (Ch1--unresolved): Knows the "whisper" sounded like her mother's voice -- No one else knows. - CARRIED (Ch2--unresolved): Knows she found a survey marker labeled "Project Phlegethon" -- Jax and Maribelle do not know. -Arc: 45% -- Lena has successfully transitioned into New Orleans but realizes the city offers no magical protection, only a different kind of exposure. +Arc: 45% -- Lena has realized that escaping the swamp did not end its influence; she is now a "ghost" in the city, haunted by what she left behind. Permanent: YES ## Jax Harlan -Location: Living room of the French Quarter safehouse. -Physical: Exhausted; heavy eyelids; no new injuries. -Emotional: Frustrated by the lack of "normalcy" in the city; wary of New Orleans' own shadows. +Location: Interior of a safehouse, Lower Ninth Ward, New Orleans. +Physical: Exhausted; smelling of diesel and salt; minor bruising on shoulders from carrying Lena. +Emotional: Determined but out of his depth; feeling the weight of the "debt" he's incurred by crossing the Duval family. Active obligations: - Owes Lena protection in the city (Ch4) -- UNPAID -Open loops: +- Owes a debt to "Cutter" for the safehouse (Ch5) -- UNPAID +Open loops: - Jax and the Duval Coven: Potential retaliation for Lena's extraction (Ch4) -- UNRESOLVED Known secrets: - CARRIED (Ch4--unresolved): Knows Lena’s fever is "land-sick" (unnatural) -- Lena thinks he believes it is a standard illness. -Arc: 15% -- Jax has committed to staying with Lena in the city rather than returning to the safety of his usual routes. -Permanent: YES - -## Remy LeBlanc -Location: French Quarter safehouse / local jazz haunts. -Physical: Scrawny; energetic; smelling of chicory and cheap tobacco. -Emotional: Relieved to see Lena; nervous about the "weight" she brought with her. -Active obligations: -- Owes Lena a place to hide (Ch5) -- PAID -Open loops: -- Remy and the Urban Coven: Mentioned rumors of city magic noticing Lena's arrival (Ch5) -- UNRESOLVED -Known secrets: -- Knows the "Quiet Men" (developers) have been asking about Duval women in the city -- Lena and Jax do not know. -Arc: 10% -- Reintroduced as Lena’s primary urban anchor and information source. +Arc: 10% -- Jax has officially transitioned from "transport" to "guardian," committing to Lena's safety even within the city. Permanent: YES # World State: ch-05 ## NPC Memory -- Aunt Maribelle (Widow’s Deep): ABSENT -- Last seen invoking the "Blackening" at the city limits. -- The Coven (Widow’s Deep): HOSTILE -- Actively seeking a way to bridge the gap between the bayou and the city. +- The Coven (Widow’s Deep): HOSTILE -- They are performing "scrying" rituals to find the boat's destination. +- Aunt Maribelle (Widow’s Deep): VENGEFUL -- She has begun a ritual using Lena’s discarded hair to track her. +- Cutter (New Orleans): NEUTRAL/WARY -- Provided the safehouse but warned Jax that "swamp business" stays at the door. ## Faction Attitudes -- The Duval Coven: Relentless -- Using ancestral ties to track Lena despite the distance. -- Terrebonne Development Corp: Probing -- Now operating within New Orleans to find the "missing" Duval heir. +- The Duval Coven: Relentless -- Using blood-tracking to bridge the gap between the bayou and the city. +- Terrebonne Development Corp: Opportunistic -- Beginning to move machinery into the areas Lena abandoned. ## Active World Events -- The Echo: A spiritual resonance felt in the French Quarter as Lena’s severed magic reacts to the city’s concrete environment. -- Project Phlegethon: Mentioned in city permits found by Remy, linking the swamp development to New Orleans infrastructure. \ No newline at end of file +- The Echo: A supernatural resonance felt in New Orleans whenever Lena tries to use her locket; it suggests the city has its own, different "pulse." +- Project Phlegethon: Testing begins in the marshlands (off-screen), causing wildlife to migrate further into the city canals. \ No newline at end of file